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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26124769">Chaos is Normal (For Us, at Least)</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/SML8180/pseuds/SML8180'>SML8180</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Chaos is Normal Universe [7]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Sanders Sides (Web Series)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Agender Character, Agender Logic | Logan Sanders, Alternate Universe - Spies &amp; Secret Agents, Anxiety | Virgil Sanders Has Panic Attacks, Blood and Injury, Bombs, Burns, Coming Out, Cosplay, Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders &amp; Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders Are Twins, Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders Has ADHD, Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders Has ADHD, Deceit | Janus Sanders is a Good Friend, First Kiss, Formalwear, Genderfluid Character, Genderfluid Dr. Emile Picani, Gun Violence, Guns, Gunshot Wounds, Haircuts, High School, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Torture, Innuendo, It's in a flashback but still, Kidnapping, Misgendering, Multi, Nonbinary Character, Nonbinary Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders, Onesies, Organized Crime, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Patton is kind of Badass, Protective Anxiety | Virgil Sanders, Protective Logic | Logan Sanders, Protective Morality | Patton Sanders, Puns &amp; Word Play, Remus being Remus, Remus is a Part-Time Barber Apparently???, School Dances, Sibling Banter, Teen!Emile, Teen!Patton, Teen!Virgil, Teenagers, Trans Male Character, Trans Male Deceit | Janus Sanders, Transphobia, teen!Janus</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 08:40:08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>65,498</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26124769</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/SML8180/pseuds/SML8180</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Life can easily become chaotic. This is especially true for teenagers and secret agents.</p><p>When Logan and their team were assigned a mission listed by their agency as "High Priority; High Danger", they didn't realize just how dangerous it would turn out to be.</p><p>When Patton and Emile make a pair of new friends, they don't realize just what they'll be getting into.</p><p>For all parties involved, chaos is just a part of life. It's normal. For them, at least.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Anxiety | Virgil Sanders/Deceit | Janus Sanders, Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders/Logic | Logan Sanders, Logic | Logan Sanders &amp; Morality | Patton Sanders</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Chaos is Normal Universe [7]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2029381</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>85</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>98</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Normalcy</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>So, just a handful of things before we jump into this story, so that things are kept more or less neat and clean.</p><p>&gt; Logan identifies as Agender and uses They/Them pronouns. They are Patton's biological father (they had a loving wife at one point, who passed when Patton was a young kid; Patton calls them Cenn).</p><p>&gt; Remus identifies as Nonbinary and uses He/Him and They/Them pronouns. Roman calls them various names, including Bro and Sib.</p><p>&gt; Emile identifies as Genderfluid and their pronouns change with the day (similar to my own experience). They have color-coded bracelets they use to indicate what sort of day it is (blue for He/Him, pink for She/Her, orange for They/Them, purple for days where any pronouns are accepted).</p><p>&gt; Janus is Transgender (FtM). His parents are divorced, and his mother is Logan's sister. He simply calls Logan, Logan, since there isn't a clear term for their relationship (that I could find while writing this; I also feel that Janus wouldn't want to call Logan by anything like that currently, since they hardly know one another, due to Janus' father being "Old Fashioned" (read: Transphobic and Homophobic) and thus never allowed Logan to be spoken about. That's a big part of WHY Janus' parents are divorced. Janus went back and forth between his parents' homes until his mother moved to California a couple years ago, but Janus wanted to stay at his current school, so he was left putting up with his father at the time).</p><p>&gt; Roman and Remus both have ADHD. Roman has the more inattentive form, and is not medicated, while Remus has the more impulsive form and is on medication. They both have issues similar to my own experience with ADHD, which will likely be explained more in-depth later on.</p><p>&gt; Virgil has Social Anxiety Disorder. His case is especially bad in unfamiliar situations and large groups. He is on medication and goes to therapy on a regular basis to help manage it, and is doing fairly well. (I do not have Social Anxiety Disorder, myself. I do, however, deal with Anxiety which is associated with my ADHD, and based Virgil's symptoms and experiences off my own).</p><p>&gt; The schedule used by the high school Patton, Janus, Virgil, and Emile go to is based off the schedule my own high school used. 4 classes a day (Blocks A-D, homeroom between A and B Block, each regular class is 83 minutes), lunch based off where your C Block is located, total of 5 or 6 classes per semester (based off what you have for classes that alternate between days).</p><p>&gt; Patton, Janus, Virgil, and Emile are all 17 years old, and they're all in the Senior class (their last year before graduation). Currently, Patton is the only one of them able to drive. The others are old enough, but Virgil is too anxious, Emile is content to walk and bike where they need to go for the time being, and Janus hasn't been able to get around to things, and doesn't want to have his deadname on his ID (he hasn't been able to have his name legally changed yet).</p><p>If anyone has any tips they want to give me on how to better write some of these characterizations, feel free to leave them in the comments! I've done my best to research things, but I'm only human. The only things on this list that I experience with are being Genderfluid (though Emile is AMAB, while I am an AFAB individual), and I have the inattentive form of ADHD, like Roman does.</p><p>All that being said, I apologize for the long note right at the start. I just wanted to make sure things are clear from the get-go with this. Anyways, on to the story proper!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Patton, you’ll be late if we don’t leave now!” Logan called up the stairs to their son’s room. They couldn’t help but roll their eyes with a quiet chuckle as they heard their son rush around his room, most likely pulling on his shoes and grabbing his backpack at the last second. They shook their head, straightening out their tie and double checking that they had everything they needed for work.</p><p>“Sorry, Cenn,” Patton gasped, catching his breath as he nearly stumbled down the last few stairs. “I’ve got a Math test today, and wanted to get some extra study time in,” he told Logan.</p><p>“Do you have everything you need?” Logan questioned, slinging the backpack that contained the things they needed for work over their shoulder.</p><p>Patton gave a nod, confirming that he had everything in his bag, “Yep! Do you?”</p><p>“I’m not the forgetful one,” Logan chuckled. “But yes, I do. Let’s get going.”</p><p>The pair left the house, Logan double checking the lock before stepping away from the door. They set their bag in the backseat before getting into the driver’s seat, while Patton tossed his baby blue backpack into the backseat, settling into the passenger seat. The two buckled up and Logan began to back out of the driveway while Patton pulled his phone out of his pocket after it went off with a soft <em> ping </em>.</p><p>“Emile wants to know if he can come over after school today so we can work on a project,” Patton told Logan, looking at the Snap displayed on his phone. The photo was a selfie of Emile, wearing a white T-shirt, tan cardigan, and a blue beaded bracelet on his right wrist as he gave the camera a peace sign and bright smile, and had a caption reading; <em> “Project work at your place?” </em></p><p>“Of course he can,” Logan replied. “Emile knows by now that he’s welcome at any time,” they stated.</p><p>“He still likes to check, you know that,” Patton told his parent, before smiling brightly and giving a thumbs-up for his own selfie, adding the caption; <em> “You know it!” </em> before sending the Snap to Emile.</p><p>The drive to school went as usual, with Patton connecting his phone to the car speakers and turning on his usual playlist. The music was shut off as Logan pulled up to the school in the lane beside the buses.</p><p>“Good luck on your test, Pat,” Logan offered, watching as the boy got out of the car and grabbed his backpack from the backseat.</p><p>“Thanks, Cenn,” Patton replied with a smile. “Have a good day at work.”</p><p>“I’ll try,” they chuckled. “I love you, Patton.”</p><p>“Love you, too, Cenn!” With that final declaration, Patton slung his backpack over his shoulder and hurried across the crosswalk towards the school, meeting up with Emile as he went. Logan couldn’t help but smile at the enthusiastic wave their son and his friend gave before they turned to enter the school, getting lost in the crowd of students as they went.</p><p>Logan pulled out onto the road with a subtle smile on their face. The few extra minutes they got with Patton on days where he asked for a ride to school always served to brighten their mood. They knew their son was growing up, and those moments together would be growing fewer in the coming couple of years, so they savored every single minute. Aside from that, with how involved and dangerous Logan’s job was, they knew that every moment they spent together could turn out to be their last. Maybe that was why they always made sure to tell Patton they loved him, just in case it was the last thing he would hear from his parent. They shook those thoughts from their head as they pulled onto the highway; there was no reason to think about that right now, they needed to get to work.</p><hr/><p>Remy sighed as he settled into his car. He plucked his drink out of the carrier he’d been given for his order, taking a sip as he buckled his seatbelt. The carrier itself was wedged into the space left by the fold-down armrest for the backseat, keeping it fairly secure as he began to drive, setting his own cup in the cupholder. He made his way to work, pulling into his usual parking space when he arrived. The man grabbed his drink out of the cupholder, before going on to pull his messenger bag from the passenger seat where he’d tossed it, slinging the strap over his shoulder as he got out of the car. As he took a sip of the iced coffee in his hand, he grabbed the carrier that held the other three drinks he’d picked up. His own cup got placed back into the carrier to free his hand, allowing him to shut the car door. He fished his access card out of his pocket as he made his way to the door, clipping it in place on the left side of his leather jacket just as he got into the building.</p><p>The man stepped up his pace a bit at spotting one of the others he’d picked up a morning drink for getting into one of the elevators.</p><p>“Hold that door!” He called out, breathing a slight sigh of relief when his coworker hurriedly blocked the elevator door with their hand, allowing him to get in. “Thanks, babe,” he said, his usual smirk on his face. “Grande cold brew with milk,” Remy rattled off, plucking one of the drinks from the carrier in his hand and offering it to the agent standing beside him.</p><p>“Thank you, Remy,” Logan replied, taking the drink from their friend’s hand. They fished the reusable straw they carried out of their bag and poked it through the drink’s lid before taking a sip and sighing. Usually they weren’t a big fan of Starbucks, but after a night of fitful sleep like they’d had last night, they appreciated it.</p><p>“No problem, Lo,” Remy responded. “Least I can do for the team as a pre-apology for the heart attacks you’re probably gonna be dealing with tonight.”</p><p>“I almost forgot that was planned for tonight,” Logan groaned.</p><p>“Yep,” Remy confirmed, popping the ‘p’ at the end of the word.</p><p>“Don’t die out there tonight,” they told Remy. Their voice was level as it always was, but Remy could hear the slight difference that told him they were worried.</p><p>“Don’t worry, Specs,” Remy reassured. “I’ll be fine with Remus at my side.”</p><p>Logan simply nodded, taking another sip of their iced coffee as the elevator stopped with a ding. The pair stepped through the doors and walked down the hall to Logan’s office, quietly chatting with one another about various things that came to mind, just as they always did in the mornings.</p><hr/><p>Roman couldn’t help but groan as he woke up to his alarm. He dismissed the alarm on his phone and sat up, stretching, wincing at the series of pops that sounded off from his back which really sounded worse than they felt. Last night had been less than restful, with his mind racing with possibilities of what could happen tonight. He shook his head, doing his best to dismiss his racing thoughts as he got out of bed and neatened up the covers. He grabbed a set of clothes and went to take a shower, hoping that the water would help wash away his worries.</p><p>After going through his usual routine; getting showered and dressed, having a breakfast sandwich he’d prepped ahead of time and thrown in the toaster oven for a bit, brushing his teeth, and rushing to double check he had his things for work; Roman made his way out the door, pulling on his helmet as he went. The familiar weight of the dark red and gold motorcycle gear was comforting to him as he swung one leg over the body of the bike and started it up, letting the engine run a moment as he pulled on his gloves. With a final check that he had everything -and shooting his brother a text that he was on his way-, Roman pulled out of his building’s parking lot and onto the road.</p><hr/><p>Remus was already up when his phone went off with a text from Roman. He fell out of the handstand he was holding -controlled as always- and picked up his phone, checking the message.</p><p>“Fuck, already?!” They exclaimed, checking the time. Remus cursed as they found that they had fifteen minutes to get ready.</p><p>They ran to the kitchenette of the small apartment, grabbing a chocolate chip toaster waffle out of the freezer and popping it into the toaster on the proper setting. While the waffle was toasting, he made his way to the bathroom, pulling off his clothes and discarding them by tossing them through the open door of his bedroom. One five-minute, almost too cold shower later, Remus was pulling on a set of dark jeans, a random T-shirt he grabbed out of the closet, and his black and green leather jacket. They made it back to the kitchen to find the waffle popped up from the slot in the toaster and grabbed it. It had probably popped up while they were in the shower, since it wasn’t as hot as it could’ve been, but they didn’t care. He ate the waffle as it was, pulling on his black boots and tying the laces quickly. </p><p>As an afterthought, Remus took their ADHD medication with a sip of water from the bottle they’d been drinking from while working out. By the time they were finished getting ready, Roman sent another text, saying that he was outside. Remus ran his fingers over his mustache, neatening it up a tad, and grabbed the triangular messenger bag he always used for work -no need to double check for things if they never left the bag in the first place- and made his way out the door, pulling his helmet on as he went.</p><p>“Great timing, Sib,” Roman stated, the chin of his helmet flipped up, allowing him to speak.</p><p>“Shut up, I didn’t realize the time,” Remus replied, playfully punching their twin.</p><p>“Sleep in?”</p><p>“I was up almost two hours early.”</p><p>“Well fuck.”</p><p>“Got in a decent workout, though, so not all bad.”</p><p>Roman shrugged, letting his brother get on the bike behind him. A tap on his hip told him that Remus was settled, and he took off, pulling back onto the road and driving them to work.</p><p>The twins arrived at work, and Roman let Remus off the back of the bike so he could back it into his usual parking spot. The pair shed their gloves, tucking them into their jacket pockets as they walked towards the front door of the building. They both clipped their access cards to their jackets as they entered and pulled off their helmets as they walked towards the elevators, managing to slip in with one of their coworkers. Remus rolled his shoulders a bit as he and Roman got out of the elevator on their floor and headed for Logan’s spacious office.</p><p>Inside Logan’s office, the twins found Logan and Remy chatting and sipping iced coffees. Logan sat at their desk, access card on a galaxy lanyard with a pair of small buttons pinned onto it; one displaying the pattern of the Agender flag, and one which mimicked the usual <em> “Hello, my name is” </em> stickers, but instead the button read <em> “Hello, my pronouns are They/Them” </em>, both buttons being a gift from Remy some time ago. Meanwhile, Remy was sitting in one of the two compact armchairs in the room, one leg slung over the arm of the chair, and an arm slung over the back.</p><p>“Hey, babes,” Remy greeted, upon noticing the twins as they entered.</p><p>“Good morning Roman, Remus,” Logan offered, looking up from the computer screen in front of them.</p><p>“Morning, guys,” the twins replied, moving to set their gear in the spot Logan had designated for them. They had set up a basic clothing rack with a shelf at the bottom, where everyone could hang up jackets or set bags aside if they needed to. Remy’s bag was set on the floor next to the rack, as it always was. Roman and Remus set their helmets on the shelf, and Remus set his bag aside while they both shed their jackets, hooking them onto the hangers and hooking them onto the rod of the clothing rack.</p><p>“Picked up drinks this morning,” Remy stated. “Grande iced Matcha Green Tea Latte for Remus, and Tall iced Guava Black Tea for Roman.”</p><p>The twins grabbed their respective drinks, finding that Logan had already popped reusable straws into the cups -a metallic green one for Remus’ cup, and a metallic red one for Roman’s-, they both nodded their thanks and took a sip of their drinks.</p><p>“Now that everyone is here,” Logan began, “let’s discuss the plan for tonight.”</p><hr/><p>Virgil was just walking out the door of his building when Janus showed up on his bike. The boy smiled tiredly at his friend, quickly unlocking his bike and pulling it from the spot it occupied. After making sure his backpack was secure on his back, Virgil mounted his bike and set off with his friend.</p><p>“So, how was your morning?” he questioned, looking over at Janus as they peddled down the road.</p><p>“The usual; dealing with dear old Dad’s bullshit, stubbed my toe on that stool in the kitchen that never gets put away, had to book it back inside for my study guide because I fell asleep reviewing,” Janus rattled off. “I’ve had worse.”</p><p>“Fuck, that Math test’s <em> today </em>? I thought it was supposed to be tomorrow!”</p><p>“Virgil, today’s Friday.”</p><p>“Fuck.”</p><p>Janus rolled his eyes, “You have the guide done, right?”</p><p>“Yeah, but I wanted to review it more,” Virgil sighed.</p><p>“You’ll be fine, Virge,” Janus told him. “We’ve got Study Hall together, I’ll help you review, then it’ll all be fresh in your head for the next block. Sound like a plan?”</p><p>Virgil took a deep breath, thinking over his friend’s words for a moment before nodding. “Yeah, sounds like a plan.”</p><p>The two boys rode to school, simply chatting about whatever came to mind. When they arrived, the pair locked their bikes up next to one another and threw their lanyards on over their heads. Virgil’s was a purple one that matched his general aesthetic, with a handful of buttons ranging from <em> Nightmare Before Christmas </em> merch to several band logos, and a pair of small ones with the rainbow and Bisexual flags respectively. Meanwhile Janus’ lanyard was yellow with little black snakes patterned all over it, and a single blue <em> He/Him </em> pronoun pin.</p><p>“Sucks we don’t have A Block together,” Virgil mused as they made their way into the building. He spotted one of the teachers about to scold him for having his hood on, and quickly flipped it down, rolling his eyes as he did so.</p><p>“Yeah. At least we’ve got Homeroom together, then C and D Blocks,” Janus shrugged.</p><p>“Thank god,” Virgil chuckled, though he was cut off by the bell that marked the time for students to head to their first class and groaned. “Screw you, bell.”</p><p>Janus laughed a bit, “You can fight the bell later, Virge.”</p><p>“Yeah, yeah,” Virgil replied. “See you in Homeroom.”</p><p>“See you in Homeroom.”</p><p>The boys parted ways, heading to their first class of the day. They were both glad that, at least for today, things for them would be fairly normal. Tonight was going to get busy, so they decided to revel in the morning’s normalcy.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Time Can Bring Danger</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Patton took a seat back at his desk after handing in his Math test, feeling fairly confident in his work. He pulled out his phone, knowing that his teacher didn’t really mind if students were on their phones after finishing a test, especially those who weren’t known troublemakers. He had a few minutes before the final bell to check messages. He had a few notifications from Twitter, Snapchat, and Discord, and a text from Cenn.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>
    <em>Cenn: </em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span>Patton, I won’t be able to pick you and Emile up from school. Will you two be alright heading home?</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Patton smiled at the text, quickly coming up with a reply.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>
    <em>Me: </em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span>We’ll be okay, Cenn! I think one of the buses stops on Mill Drive, we can hop on that bus and walk from there.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <b>
    <em>Cenn: </em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span>Alright. Be safe, Patton. I’ll see you when I get home. I love you.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <b>
    <em>Me: </em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span>Love you too, Cenn! &lt;3</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Patton sent Emile a message to update him on the slight change in plans, and quickly got a thumbs-up emoji in response. Satisfied, the bubbly teen played a few levels of a game on his phone until the bell rang. He and the other students stood and began filing out of the room, though Patton noticed something bright out of the corner of his eye and stopped, approaching the bright yellow composition notebook that was left behind. The cover had several stickers of different snakes on it, and had the name </span>
  <em>
    <span>Janus Dolion Prescott</span>
  </em>
  <span> written in neat handwriting on a piece of heavy masking tape that was stuck on over the lines. Patton somewhat recognized the name, knowing that there was a student who had corrected the teacher for nearly a month when attendance was taken and they always used the wrong name. Being the person he was, Patton picked up the notebook and hurried out the door, hoping to catch up with its owner before they took off.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The kind boy ended up finding the person who fit the fuzzy image he had in his head of the notebook’s owner, and rushed to approach him as he began to mount his bicycle.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, uh, Janus!” Patton called out, faltering on the student’s name. Luckily, he seemed to have the correct person, seeing as the boy looked up to figure out who was addressing him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s me,” Janus replied as Patton got closer. “And you are…?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, I’m Patton! We’re in Math class together. You forgot your notebook,” Patton stated, offering the yellow book to the other boy.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you, Patton. You didn’t need to track me down like this, though. I would’ve gotten it tomorrow,” Janus responded, slipping his arm out of one of his backpack straps so he could get at the zipper. He unzipped the bag and took his notebook from Patton, quickly flipping through the pages to make sure nothing was missing or had been tampered with in any way. Finding everything as it should be, Janus slipped the book into his bag and zipped it back up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It was no trouble!” Patton reassured. “I’ve left notebooks and stuff behind by mistake before, and had them go missing. I didn’t want you to lose that, especially if it’s something important, y’know?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, thanks,” Janus nodded, before looking towards Virgil who was ringing the bell on his bike to see what the hold-up was. “I should get going before Panic! At the Everywhere takes off without me,” he went on, speaking up so Virgil was sure to hear.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton couldn’t help but giggle a bit, though he stopped when he spotted the dark-clothed boy starting to take off. “Um, I think he actually </span>
  <em>
    <span>is </span>
  </em>
  <span>taking off without you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Damnit, Virgil! Don’t you turn that fucking corner, you Emo Nightmare!” Janus called out, quickly taking off after his friend.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton couldn’t help but laugh, before he rushed to meet with Emile, who was already on the bus they needed to take. He sat beside his friend, and recounted what had just happened, telling the story as the bus pulled away from the school and started down the road.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>“Do you think he looked at anything in it?” Virgil asked once Janus caught up to him, smirking at his friend.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If he did, he didn’t say anything,” Janus replied. “You’re a little shit, you know that?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can’t be the little shit if I’m the older one.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s a six week difference, V, it’s not even that much.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Still older.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shut up.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, that’s not nice, kid.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I swear to God, I will kick you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil couldn’t hold back his laughter, which proved to be contagious as Janus joined in. They talked about how their classes went, and whatever else came to mind as they rode their bikes. Eventually, they got to Virgil’s apartment building and stopped for a moment, with Virgil dismounting his bike to put it away.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Eleven tonight, you know the drill,” Janus told him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wanna come stay at my place for the weekend after?” Virgil offered, giving the other boy a nod.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You know I never turn down the chance to get away from my Dad for a while,” Janus replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sweet,” Virgil smirked. “I’ll see you tonight.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus nodded, and the boys exchanged a two-fingered salute before he started to head home. Janus was glad he’d have a weekend away from his Dad; he could only take so much of the man’s bullshit.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>“Are we clear on what the plan is for tonight?” Logan questioned, looking at the three members of their little team.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No questions here, Teach,” Roman replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Crystal clear, babe,” Remy agreed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remus took an extra second to respond, looking over the typed page of bullet points Logan had given him one more time before folding it up. “We’re all on the same page, Nerdy Wolverine.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good. We can’t afford any slip-ups tonight, especially since I’ll be working from my office at home for this one,” Logan told the others. “Remy, Remus, you two should probably get going, make sure you’ll be prepared for anything that may come up.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You got it, Lo,” Remus replied, giving a somewhat exaggerated salute.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll bring your helmet back to your place, Re,” Roman offered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, Ro!” Remus smiled, pulling on his jacket and slinging his bag over his shoulder. He passed Remy’s bag to him, sipping on the iced drink in his hand.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ll be in touch tonight,” Remy finalized, before heading out of the office with Remus.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan sighed, letting themself slump back in their chair, childishly grabbing the cup containing their iced coffee with both hands and taking a long sip of the drink. Usually they tried to keep up their serious appearance, but right now, with Roman being the only other person in the room, they couldn’t be bothered to care for a minute.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’ll be fine, Logan,” Roman stated, before taking a sip of his iced tea.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That isn’t what I’m worried about, Roman,” Logan told him. “These are times I worry about working from my home office. Patton’s going to be home tonight, and his friend is going to be over to work on a school project over the weekend.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You don’t want them to be put in danger,” Roman said, and Logan nodded. He’d hit the nail on the head. “Does Patton even know what you do for work?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan couldn’t help but sigh. “Not in full, no, but I know he’s curious. It’s likely he’s figured out a few things, but I’m not sure about how much he knows.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He’s a Senior, right?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You know he’s going to start asking questions, Lo. He looks up to you. You can’t just keep this a secret from him forever, what if he wants to know what school you went to?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then I’ll sit down with him and talk to him about it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And if something happens before then?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan opened their mouth to answer, but found that they had nothing to say. They shut their mouth, looking towards the photo of Patton they had framed on the desk. The photo was an older one, taken when the boy had been just seven years old. He was sitting on Logan’s lap, smiling wide, showing the gap left behind by his two front baby teeth falling out, his dirty blonde hair curling all over the place, despite Logan’s efforts to tame it before the photo had been taken. Both Patton and Logan were wearing pale blue polo shirts, grey pants, blue suspenders, and blue bowties. Logan felt a smile tug at the corner of their mouth as they remembered how excited Patton had been to get dressed up and have pictures taken. He had always taken things on with a level of enthusiasm that was down right infectious.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This is one of the most dangerous operations we’ve been assigned to, Logan. You have every right to worry about him. But you can’t shelter him forever,” Roman’s voice cut through their thoughts. “By sheltering him, you’re just delaying the inevitable.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They couldn’t help but sigh, “I know. Time can bring danger in our line of work, especially when it comes to family.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman nodded. “You don’t need to tell him everything, Lo. But, you should talk to him about this stuff.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan gave a slight nod in response. The two fell into silence for a time, with Logan checking some things over for what would go on that night, and Roman sitting by their desk in one of the folding chairs they kept in the office, filling out a few hard copies of forms he’d been putting off. By late afternoon, they had both done all they could for the day and packed everything up. Logan made copies of everything they would need and made sure they transferred to their work laptop properly, before shutting down their computer, while Roman put his chair away and proceeded to grab his gear.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Closed circuit, I’ll send out to you, Remy, and Remus roughly ten minutes before the start of the infiltration,” Logan stated as they stepped into the elevator with Roman.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>With that final exchange, the pair descended in the elevator and made their way to their respective vehicles. They pulled out of the building’s parking lot, heading home.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Patton and Emile stood in the dining area of Patton’s home, working on a project for their Science class. They were both in their school’s Forensics class, and had decided to do their project on Change Blindness, in which they would explain the science behind the phenomena, while occasionally making changes to their clothing and hair, out of sight of the class.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The pair were simply rehearsing their roles, using the dinner table as a stand in for the front desk. Patton had just “dropped” his pen, and ducked down, putting on a headband to hold his hair away from his face as Logan entered the house. As Patton went to stand up, he hit his head on the table.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ow!” He exclaimed, setting his pen on the table and standing up more carefully, rubbing his head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What are you boys doing?” Logan questioned, standing in the doorway of the dining area. They still had their work bag slung over their shoulder.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Rehearsing the changes for our project,” Emile told them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This second to last change is kicking my butt,” Patton griped.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He keeps hitting his head on the table.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t hurt yourself, Patton,” Logan stated, completely deadpan.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Instructions unclear. I have a headache.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan let out a soft chuckle. “Take a break for a bit, get some Tylenol. You have plenty of time to practice before you need to do it for real.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good call, Mx. Holmes,” Emile stated. “I really don’t want to watch my best friend give himself a concussion.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton giggled a bit, going over to the drawer where the Tylenol was kept. He grabbed a dose from the bottle, and got himself a glass of water, taking the pills easily.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do you boys want for dinner?” Logan questioned, stepping into the kitchen. “And Emile, I did double check with your mother; you’re all set to stay the weekend,” they added.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got it, Mx. Holmes,” Emile replied with a smile.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You know you don’t need to call me that, Emile,” Logan stated, only to receive a shrug from the boy. “My question still stands, what should we have for dinner?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I vote pizza!” Patton exclaimed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Pizza sounds </span>
  <em>
    <span>so </span>
  </em>
  <span>good after whatever the heck the school tried to feed us for lunch,” Emile stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are we sure that was even food?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“At this point, I have no idea.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think pizza is a good idea,” Logan cut in, chuckling a bit. “Large pepperoni, Dr. Pepper, Cherry Coke?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You know it, Cenn!” Patton giggled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll call it in, you two clean up your notes and pull up a movie.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan watched as the boys went to pack up the homework they’d been working on. Patton and Emile were both sweet boys, but they </span>
  <em>
    <span>were </span>
  </em>
  <span>still teenagers, after all. They dialed the number for the local pizza joint, placing the usual order, and adding in one of their cookie pizzas as a treat. After a second of contemplation, they decided to opt for delivery. Usually, Logan would simply go pick up the order, but tonight they wanted to relax as long as they could before having to switch back into work mode. After the call wrapped up, Logan went to join the boys, chuckling when they saw the two teens arguing over what movie to watch. They simply shook their head, taking a seat on the sofa, deciding to simply savor the time before they had to get back to work.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Janus was glad to see an empty driveway when he got home from school. He tucked his bike away in its usual spot and made his way inside, heading up to his room. As soon as he shut the door behind him, Janus dropped his backpack on the floor next to his desk and pulled off his jacket, simply tossing it onto the foot of his bed. His yellow T-shirt followed, and he simply tossed it onto his bed, on top of his jacket. Finally, he pulled off his binder, fighting with the tight garment before setting it aside, taking a few deep breaths. He pulled out one of his larger T-shirts and put it on, keeping his back turned to the mirror as he did. He was glad his breasts were smaller, thanks to his mother’s genetics and his own thin frame, but he would much rather have a flat chest. Maybe someday he would.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He sighed, taking a seat at his desk and tying his hair back. He still kept it a bit long, not long enough for all of it to neatly tie into a ponytail, but he could get roughly half of it up, keeping it out of the way. Janus still wasn’t sure if he wanted to properly chop his hair off, but it was significantly shorter than it once was. He pulled his English work out of his backpack, figuring he’d get the homework he had done early and have the weekend free to just hang out with Virgil.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The English work wasn’t all that difficult, just a couple of chapters to read in their current book, and a short page of questions to answer. Janus finished it fairly quickly, and put his work away in his bag where it belonged. He pulled his yellow notebook out, flipping through the pages.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The notebook was one he kept with him at all times. He kept track of assignments in it, wrote himself little notes, there were a few paragraphs dotted throughout that really should have been in his private journal, but he couldn’t be bothered to pull the pages and put them in the correct place, he even had a number of doodles in the book. That was one thing he and Virgil had connected over right away; they both enjoyed drawing as a way of clearing their minds. Janus smiled to himself and picked up one of the various ballpoint gel pens he had in the cup on his desk, and began to sketch in one of the empty spaces on the page he was on.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus felt himself relax as he sketched, focusing on the feel of the pen in his hand and the marks he left in bright blue on the page. He pulled his hand away, looking over the single-line sketch he’s made, and paused. The drawing turned out to be of the boy who had returned his notebook earlier. He’d had bouncy light brown curls, freckles dotting his face, round glasses over his eyes, and a bright smile that Janus found he couldn’t quite get out of his head, as it reminded him so much of his mother’s. What had his name been? Something starting with a </span>
  <em>
    <span>P</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he was sure of it. The boy simply shrugged, putting his pen away and tucking his notebook back into his bag; it was only a matter of time before his Dad got home, and he’d rather not risk him spotting the book and making the decision to go through it like he did with all Janus’ other things.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Speaking of, Janus got up from his chair and started looking through his drawers. He needed to pack some clothes for the weekend. He grabbed three T-shirts; one of his favorite yellow ones, with a snake pattern climbing up the right side, a red one he’d gotten from school when they had done a production of </span>
  <em>
    <span>Chicago</span>
  </em>
  <span> his Sophomore year where he’d been a member of the stage crew, and a purple one Virgil had given him as a gift that had a picture of a snake curled up on top of an icecream cone so it looked like a perfect serving of soft-serve and had its tongue sticking out. The three shirts went into his bag, rolled up small so they wouldn’t take up too much space. He packed an extra set of jeans, his spare binder, hairbrush, a set of pajama pants, and a couple of other things he would need while at Virgil’s. He was glad to find that the spare binder had been in its usual place under the false bottom of one of his desk drawers, along with his testosterone patches.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As Janus double checked that he had everything he would need, hurriedly tucking a few of his patches and a sports bra into the bag, he was thankful that his Mom was at least supportive of him. He just wished he stayed with her more often. Janus pulled out his notebook and a pen, making a note to call his Mom and see if there was any way they could work something out. As time went on and Janus started to notice the changes brought on by his HRT, he noticed that his Dad was becoming more hostile towards him, and it was only a matter of time before things got dangerous.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Infiltration</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Quick content warning for this chapter!</p><p>This chapter contains a conversation between Janus and his father. Janus' father is transphobic, and misgenders and dead-names Janus throughout the conversation. There is also an instance at the end of their conversation where Janus is struck by his father.</p><p>The beginning and end of this section is book-ended by three asterisks (like so: ***) at the start and end, in case anyone wants to skip it. Janus and Virgil have a conversation about what went down in the chapter that'll be going up next week that explains what went down.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Logan’s phone chimed at 10:45, alerting them that they needed to get to their office and get to work.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I need to get some work done in my office,” they explained to the two teenagers in the room when the pair looked over. “I don’t know how long it’ll take. Try not to stay up too late.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got it, Cenn,” Patton replied. Emile nodded in agreement, giving a thumbs-up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan went upstairs to their home office and opened up their laptop. They started up their desktop as well, setting up the closed circuit feed they needed in order to be in contact with Roman, Remus, and Remy. Remus and Remy would be their eyes, ears, and legs during this, and they needed to make sure everything was running properly.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>“You ready for this, Remus?” Remy questioned, adjusting his glasses. They weren’t his usual set, but rather a set of dark framed glasses styled similarly to the Warby Parkers Logan wore, and contained a small camera.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As I’ll ever be,” Remus replied, adjusting the dark-wash denim vest they wore, which was outfitted with a camera designed to look like the button on the left chest pocket.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Can you two hear me?”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Logan’s voice came through the pair’s discreet earpieces.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Loud and clear, Brainiac,” Remus replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We hear you loud and clear, babe. How do we sound on your end?” Remy answered.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Clear as polished glass,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Logan responded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And you can see okay?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Your camera is perfect, Remus,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Logan told him. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Remy, could you clean your camera? Things are looking a bit smudged.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“You got it,” Remy consented, taking off the glasses and cleaning the spot where the camera lens was hidden. “Better?” he questioned, putting the glasses back on.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Much better, thank you, Remy,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Logan confirmed.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I can barely hear any of you,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Roman’s voice cut in, sounding a bit garbled by static.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I’ll see what I can do, Roman,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Logan stated. They made a few adjustments to the circuit to try to clear up Roman’s static. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Is that any better?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Still quiet, but you’re clear.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan made another adjustment, bringing up the incoming volume to Roman’s headset. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“And now?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Crystal clear coming from you, Microsoft Nerd.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“And from us?” Remy questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, you hear us, little bro?” Remus also prompted.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I was born first, and you know it, Remus,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Roman argued. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“And yes, I hear all three of you loud and clear. Got visual from you both, and the planted cameras.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Then we’re all set,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Logan stated. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Everybody on the same page concerning the plan?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Trash Gremlin and I get in there, they keep an eye out for Spider, while I use my charm and connections to get into the archive and get you patched in so you can see the most recent files accessed,” Remy rattled off.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And,” Remus cut in. “If things go south, we call in Roman for an assist in getting the fuck outta dodge.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“And should the worst case scenario come to pass, all three of us have a knife, a handgun, and a set of compact lockpicks,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Roman chimed in.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Perfect,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Logan praised. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“All doors and windows are securely locked and blinds are drawn here, and home security is active. Should anything happen, a distress signal will be sent to all three of you, as well as nearby backup, and I’ll ensure the boys get out safely.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“The boys?” Remy questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Patton and his friend. They don’t know anything,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> they confessed. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“They’ll be fine.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“It’s almost eleven, you two, you need to get going, ASAP,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Roman stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Moving in,” Remy returned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remy and Remus made their way towards the building across the street from them. The building looked rough on the outside, as if it had been abandoned for years. It served as a perfect venue for meetings such as the one the pair was walking into. Remy and Remus had been working their way up to this for months at this point, gaining the trust of those in the group and making connections, all while reporting anything they learned back to Logan, who organized everything to keep the Bureau updated. Their employer, the Sanders Bureau of International Security, had been keeping tabs on a high-profile criminal organization, calling themselves the Venom Order. Several months back, when word got to the Director that the Order was stepping up their presence all over the city, the Director had immediately put Logan, Remy, Roman, and Remus on the case, giving them what could end up their most dangerous assignment of their careers.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remus rolled his shoulders a bit, adjusting their vest out of habit. Meanwhile, Remy seemed perfectly calm as the pair walked up to the entrance. They flashed the badges they had been given once they had gained the Boss’ trust to attend these meetings and were allowed inside with little issue. As far as any of the other Order members were concerned, Remus always wore a dark denim vest, and Remy needed his glasses to see, so the accessories weren’t questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Inside the beat-up looking building, there was a good number of tough looking criminals from all over the city. Remy and Remus recognized several of them, having “worked” with them in the past. There was one person in particular they were looking for though, and in the crowd they saw before them, it would be difficult to find them.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Virgil met up with Janus on the way to the meeting, and they rode their bikes there together. Virgil had traded in his black and grey checkered hoodie for a black one that had dark purple spiders patterned all over it, and Janus had pulled on a leather jacket that had a pattern of a snake coiling along his left arm. The boys pulled up to the building and hid their bikes around the corner, before making their way up to the building. As the two walked, they were quiet. Virgil put on the mask he always wore to these meetings; a dark purple one with an elaborate spider pattern in black, white, and red. Janus didn’t wear a mask, but rather he wore makeup; some contouring on the right side of his face to sharpen his features, and a pattern of scales on the left, giving him a somewhat snake-like appearance.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The pair flashed their Order badges and were allowed in with no issue, even despite their young age. They were well known go-betweens, and Janus had the added advantage of being the Boss’ kid. They made their way in, and Virgil took slow breaths behind his mask. He always hated these meetings; they were crowded and often got loud, and it was difficult to find someplace quiet and out of the way where he could calm himself down. It was part of why he and Janus always stuck together during them. Janus just had a way of keeping him calm.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I have to check in with the old man,” Janus told Virgil as they got close to the main space inside the building. “It shouldn’t take too long. Will you be okay on your own?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil looked around the room. There weren’t too many people just yet, and those who were there were mostly congregating in small groups, leaving plenty of space around the edges of the room for Virgil to lurk. “Yeah, I think I’ll be okay. I’ll just stick to the edges, y’know?” he tried to sound confident as he spoke, though he fidgeted with his fingers at his sides.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll try to be quick, and I’ll come find you after,” Janus reassured.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil nodded, and watched his friend disappear into the crowd. His anxiety quickly made itself known in the absence of his friend. He moved off to the edge of the room, partially hiding himself in the shadows of the dimly lit space, deciding to simply watch the other people mill about.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Remus and Remy were standing off to the edge of the venue, with Remus leaning against the wall, hands tucked into the pockets of his jeans. For a few moments, they simply watched the criminals that surrounded them, observing their movements.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m gonna get started on charming my way in,” Remy told Remus. “You keep an eye out for Spider. The kid’s bound to be here somewhere.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got it, Caffeine Freak,” Remus confirmed, giving their partner a two-fingered salute.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remy nodded and stepped away, quickly blending into the crowd and leaving Remus behind. Remus scanned the room, looking for the smaller bodies. They were looking for a teen or young adult, someone who would be smaller than most of those in the room.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He spotted one teen walking towards the hall that led to the Boss’ office, but the boy seemed to be too small to be Spider, and didn’t fit the description they had. Spider supposedly wore his hair short, and at meetings he was said to wear a black spider-print hoodie and a mask, meanwhile the kid Remus watched go by was wearing a leather jacket with a snake on the left arm and makeup on the left side of his face, and his hair was too long. Thus, Remus kept looking, trying to find someone who matched Spider’s description.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Remy walked through the crowd fairly easily, getting close to the doorway that led to the hall where he would find the archives. All he had to do was get into the archives and patch Logan through; they would be able to handle things from there.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Where do you think you’re headed, Sandman?” a voice questioned from just behind Remy. The man turned to see a man who was a good head taller than he was standing there, arms crossed, looking far from amused.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Just making sure everything’s secure, babe,” Remy replied. “You know how I roll, by now, always gotta check.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The taller man looked him over, seeming suspicious. After a long moment, he nodded, “I get that. Just don’t go snooping around, or the Boss’ll wanna have a word with you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got it, babe,” the agent replied, giving a nod and two-fingered salute. Remy watched as the other man stalked away, and after checking that there was nobody else to spot him, he pulled a card from his pocket and wedged it between the door and the frame, using it to open the door with little issue. He slipped through the door and hooked an elastic he kept with him around the doorknob, passing it over the latch and fixing it to the other side of the door, keeping the latch from engaging again. Now all he had to do was find the archive and patch Logan in.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Logan sat at their desk in the dimly lit office, their face only illuminated by their computer screens. They watched the fixed cameras, taking note of Remus’ position and ensuring that Remy was moving about safely. They held their breath for a moment as Remy was confronted by one of the Order’s well-known members, only letting that breath go once he was safely on the other side of the door.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Alright, Sleep,” they began, watching Remy’s camera feed closely, “the archives should be down this hall, behind the third door on your right.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Got it, Brain,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Remy replied through his hidden mic.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan went back to watching the cameras and listening for any noise coming from downstairs. The boys had seemingly decided to put on another movie after they had left the room, though they couldn’t tell what movie it was. They shrugged and turned their eyes to Remus’ camera, watching for any sign of Spider.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Duke, in the corner to your left, that might be him,” they stated, observing a small body off to the left of Remus’ camera’s view.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Might be, want me to take a look?” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Remus responded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes. At least get a bit closer, then I can do a better job of comparing the images we have on file to the feed.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“You got it.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan watched through Remus’ video feed as they slowly made their way closer to the smaller person. A quick glance up towards Remy’s view and the fixed camera in that area quickly shifted their focus.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sleep, find someplace to hide, you’ve got someone coming your way.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They heard Remy curse under his breath before they ducked into a small alcove where he couldn’t be seen. Logan watched as the person on the fixed camera walked by, seeming to tighten the half-ponytail they wore. Once they were sure the coast was clear, they signaled to Remy to continue on, and went back to keeping an eye on the cameras.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus sighed, quickly walking down the hall that led to his father’s office. He tightened his half-ponytail and adjusted his jacket on his shoulders, mostly out of habit. When he reached the door, which was marked with a painting of a viper, he hesitated. He hadn’t seen his father since roughly six o’clock that morning, and the man hadn’t been in the best mood. Janus could only hope he was in a better mood tonight. With a slow breath, he knocked on the door in front of him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Enter,” he heard from the other side of the door, and he quickly did so, standing up straight and doing his best to not seem nervous. “Juliette, just as I expected.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus resisted the urge to correct his father; doing so never led to anything good, and never brought any change, anyways. Instead, he simply nodded, “Of course, Sir.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Anything new to report?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Everything seems to be running smoothly, Sir.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good, good,” Joseph looked up from the notes he had been looking over, letting his eyes scan over his child. Janus did his best not to squirm under his father’s gaze. “And school?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“School was fine,” Janus answered. “I’m confident I passed my Math test, and got full marks on the English test I had on Tuesday.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Anything else?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I signed up for Interclass plays; I’ll be a member of the Senior class stage crew.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I see.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus always hated these conversations with his father. Sometimes they went well, and sometimes they didn’t. They either ended civilly, or in a screaming match that left Janus hoarse and his father pissed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The school’s Fall Formal is coming up, isn’t it?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“In a few weeks, yes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do you plan on going?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Virgil and I are thinking of going with some friends.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ll have to get a dress.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I was going to wear a suit.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Joseph let out a long sigh, the sort of sigh that told Janus that the man’s patience was running out. “It’s a Formal, Juliette. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Boys </span>
  </em>
  <span>wear suits to Formals, </span>
  <em>
    <span>girls</span>
  </em>
  <span> wear </span>
  <em>
    <span>dresses</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m not a girl,” Janus calmly stated. His father’s views were rigid and outdated, but that wouldn’t stop him from being himself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m not renting you a suit so you can </span>
  <em>
    <span>pretend</span>
  </em>
  <span> to be a boy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why can’t you accept that you have a son?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Because I </span>
  <em>
    <span>don’t have a son</span>
  </em>
  <span>!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus clenched his fist at his side, glaring daggers at his father. “I </span>
  <em>
    <span>am </span>
  </em>
  <span>your son! If you can’t see that, then you’re </span>
  <em>
    <span>fucking blind</span>
  </em>
  <span>, old man!” As soon as the words left his mouth, Janus knew he’d gone too far.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Joseph stood up from his seat behind the desk and slowly stalked around it towards Janus. “</span>
  <em>
    <span>What </span>
  </em>
  <span>did you just say to me?” he questioned. When Janus didn’t answer aside from looking up at him with a bit of fright in his eyes, the adult grabbed the front of the teen’s shirt. “What did you just </span>
  <em>
    <span>fucking </span>
  </em>
  <span>say to me?!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus swallowed heavily before answering, “I said if you can’t see that you have a son, then you’re fucking blind, you old, outdated piece of shit!” Why hold back when you’ve already crossed the line?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus’ father glared at the teen in his grasp, before he landed a hard slap to his son’s right cheek. Janus’ head snapped to the side with the force, and the ring on his father’s hand left a small scratch behind. Joseph shoved the boy back, causing him to stumble and fall to the floor. He simply stepped over his son, not even bothering to go around him to get to the office door. “Pick yourself up, Juliette,” he spat, before leaving the office, letting the door slam shut behind him, leaving Janus to pull himself together.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Virgil was simply standing in one of the corners of the room, keeping his distance from most of the others attending the meeting, simply people-watching. Most of the others didn’t interest him, but there was one man he couldn’t keep his eyes off of. The man wore a dark green T-shirt and a dark-wash denim vest, with black jeans and boots, and had a thin mustache. The man seemed to be watching him, as well, and Virgil couldn’t help but silently panic when he saw the man starting to approach him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Bit young to be at this kind of thing, aren’t you, kid?” the man questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No,” Virgil simply replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do they call ya, Emo?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Emo?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Just answer the question.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“...Spider.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Neat.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil glanced up at the man through his bangs. “What do they call you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Beetlejuice.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nice,” Virgil shoved his hands into the pockets of his hoodie. A few moments of awkward silence went by, and Virgil was starting to worry about Janus. Usually when he went to check in with his Dad, it didn’t take this long, unless they got into an argument. Even then, though, things didn’t usually take this long. He didn’t even have a way to know if Janus was on his way back, since he was unable to see through the crowd.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Looking for someone?” the man beside Virgil questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Huh?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Looks like you’re trying to find someone. Who is it?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can you spot a kid? Little shorter than me, chin-length, medium blonde hair in a half-ponytail. He’s got a yellow shirt on, and a leather jacket with a snake on the left arm.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Snake makeup on the left side of his face?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s him.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He’s headed this way. Doesn’t look too good, though.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil waited for a moment, and spotted Janus pushing through the crowd. When their eyes met, the other boy darted towards him. Virgil could see what Beetlejuice had meant; Janus’ hair was tousled, his right cheek was bright pink, and there was a scratch on his cheek which had a little red trail leading down from it, and the other boy looked as if he were going to cry.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Deceit? You okay, man?” Virgil questioned, approaching Janus.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know…” Janus replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What happened, kid?” Remus asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He hit me…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m gonna kill the bastard,” Virgil growled, attempting to head into the crowd to find Joseph.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Spider-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He can’t just do that to his own kid. First he refuses to see you for who you are, now he pulls this bullshit?” Virgil knew he was starting to go on a tangent, but he didn’t care as he went to get around his friend to tear his old man a new one. He only stopped when he felt a hand gripping his sleeve.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Virge…” Janus sounded desperate. Desperate to get out, desperate for his friend to just be by his side.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil looked at the smaller teen, taking a slow breath before turning around to face him properly. He pulled his friend into a tight hug. He felt Janus’ shuddering breath and made a split second decision. “Let’s get you out of here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What?” Janus sounded a bit out of it, and a little choked up, as if he were trying not to cry.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’re ditching this one. You need to decompress and from where I stand, a movie night is in order.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But he’ll know-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fuck him,” Virgil couldn’t help but cut off his friend. “We’ll find out what we missed after. You’ve pulled this for me while I was in the middle of a panic attack, it’s time for me to return the favor.” Without waiting for an answer, Virgil started to lead his friend out of the building, sneaking by those stationed to stand guard. They got out to their bikes and simply rode away.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Okay, Brain. I’m in. You ready for this?” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Remy’s voice came through Logan’s speakers.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ready when you are, Sleep,” they confirmed, flexing their fingers.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They could tell that Remy nodded to himself, judging by the movement of his camera’s view. Logan watched through Remy’s view as he plugged a drive into the computer he approached. They flexed their fingers, getting ready to find what was needed and get out quickly.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“You’re patched in, Brain. It’s your time to shine.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan smirked to themself, and began rapidly navigating through the archive records. They went to the most recent files accessed, and soon found what was needed; a set of reports concerning recent Venom Order activity and their current project. Curious, they took a short moment to check the summary of one of the main reports they found as it copied and transferred to the drive and to their own machine.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh fuck…”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“What? Brain, what’s up, babe? What’d you find?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Duke, are you still on the line?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Of course,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>came Remus’ voice.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You two need to get out of there, </span>
  <em>
    <span>now</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“What did you find in there, babe?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll explain after. Crown, get ready to get out of there.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“You got it.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan finished getting the files copied and transferred just as Remy pulled the drive from the computer, breaking their connection. They sat back for a second, watching the cameras as Remy and Remus made their way out of the building, doing their best not to get caught. On one of the cameras, they spotted someone entering the archive just after Remy had turned the corner. They could only hope now that they’d manage to leave no trace in the sudden break.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Regrouping</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Quick content warning!</p><p>The start of this chapter mentions guns and gunfire. None of the characters are harmed, but I thought I'd mention it. Guns/gunfire are a pretty regular thing in this story, hence the tags.</p><p>The incident between Janus and his father is also mentioned in this chapter, as Virgil and Janus talk about what happened.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Roman was waiting out in the car for his brother and their partner. He had his foot on the brake, one hand on the wheel, and the other on the shift, watching his rearview mirror for any sign of the pair.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“On your five, brother!” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Remus’ voice came through his headset. Roman just got the doors unlocked as the pair arrived, hardly breaking their sprint as they got into the car. The door wasn’t even shut all the way when Roman shifted the car into drive and hit the gas.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What the </span>
  <em>
    <span>hell </span>
  </em>
  <span>happened in there?” Roman questioned, glancing at Remy and Remus through the rearview mirror.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Lo just said we had to get out. Someone caught us just as we were getting outta there,” Remy stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sounds like we’re in for a bit of a drive to make sure we weren’t followed,” Roman groaned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yep,” Remus sighed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Without another word, Roman took a right. Might as well start on throwing off any possible pursuers now.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Logan took a slow breath and watched the camera feeds in front of them. Remy and Remus had both gotten to Roman’s car safely, and for the most part, they seemed to be in the clear. Just as they were shutting down their laptop and computer, they heard some noise from downstairs that didn’t sound like it came from Patton and Emile.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They quickly grabbed their work bag and put the laptop into it, while they put on their more discreet headset. They pulled the backpack on and grabbed the loaded sidearm out of their desk, listening closely as they made their way towards the door of the office and slowly opened it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The hallway was dark, as they expected. Logan took a deep breath, tightly gripping the gun in their hands. They slowly made their way towards Patton’s room, and opened the door, finding nobody inside and nothing out of place aside from the pillows and blankets being missing from Patton’s bed, which wasn’t really out of place considering Emile was over. A quick check of their own room yielded the same result, nobody inside and nothing out of place, and the same with a check of the upstairs bathroom.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They heard more noise as they made their way down the stairs, and held their breath. Some quiet whispers could be heard in the darkness, and Logan made their way towards the living room where the boys had set themselves up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Boys? Is that you?” Logan questioned, speaking in an almost-whisper.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mx. Holmes?” Emile’s voice answered, with the same whisper-like volume.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Cenn, we heard something outside,” Patton chimed in, also speaking in a near whisper.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Emile, I want you to grab the overnight bag your mother dropped off,” Logan ordered. “Patton, in the closet by the back door, there’s a black and blue backpack. I want you to get that bag and put it on. Do you boys understand me so far?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, Mx. Holmes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’re with you, Cenn.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good. I want you two to wait inside the closet by the back door. I want you to stay in there with the door shut, and do not come out unless I come and get you, or I signal that you need to run. If I tell you two to run, I need you to go out the back door and run as fast as you can towards Mill Drive. On the way, don’t look back, don’t speak, and for the love of all that is logical, do not stop running. Do I make myself clear?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, Mx. Holmes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Cenn, what’s going on? Why do you have a packed bag in the closet? Why do we need to-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Patton, I understand you have a lot of questions right now, but this is not the time to ask them. Just do as I say, and trust me, Kiddo. I’ll explain everything when we’re all out of immediate danger.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But I… Okay.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good,” Logan took a deep breath and gave Emile a pat on the shoulder and gave Patton a quick kiss on the forehead in the dark. “Now go, do as I told you, and keep an ear out for if I tell you to run. I’m going to do a sweep of the rest of the house.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Be careful, Cenn.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I will, Pat. I promise.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan listened as the boys did as they’d told them to. Emile grabbed his bag and went with Patton to the closet by the back door. They heard the door open and the rustling of a backpack, before the door quietly clicked shut behind the boys. With a deep breath, they began to check the rest of the house; the downstairs bathroom, the guest room, the closet under the stairs, and found nothing. They shifted the blinds just enough to see out, and gasped softly, spotting a couple of cars outside that certainly didn’t belong to the neighbors, nor did they belong to Logan or Patton. As they went to move to a different window to investigate, Logan heard the unmistakable sound of shattering glass coming from the living room.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They rushed to the corner and saw that one of the windows had been broken, and caught a glimpse of someone coming through the space left behind. The same sound of breaking glass could be heard coming from upstairs, and Logan knew they were all in trouble.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Patton stood in the dark closet with Emile, tightly gripping the straps of the heavy backpack on his back to keep his hands from shaking. Neither boy knew what was happening, but they both trusted Logan enough to follow what they said to do. The boys heard glass breaking and a few very muffled voices.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do you think’s happening?” Emile whispered to him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know,” Patton whispered back. “It doesn’t sound good, though.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The pair fell silent once again, listening. They both flinched when they heard a noise that almost reminded them of fireworks, but they knew enough given the context that it wasn’t fireworks. The boys could only hope that none of those shots hit Logan.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Neither boy knew how much time had gone by before they heard heavy footfalls coming towards the closet. They held their breath when the steps stopped right on the other side of the door. The door opened slowly, as footsteps could be heard upstairs, and the two friends could just barely tell that it was Logan on the other side.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I need you two to follow me, quickly and quietly,” they said, ushering Patton and Emile out of the closet.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton watched as his parent pulled a second backpack from the closet and pulled it on over the slim backpack they used for work. He and Emile followed Logan out the back door of the house, saying nothing as they went. The three moved quickly, heading towards Mill Drive. Patton had too many things running through his head to focus on anything but following Logan.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Remy sat in Logan’s office with Roman and Remus, waiting for any word from their friend. Logan’s connection had cut off quickly and none of them had heard from their beloved nerd since. Suddenly, after what felt like ages, Remy’s phone went off with the ringtone he’d set for Logan, and he scrambled to answer it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Logan? Please, god, Lo, tell me that’s you,” Remy rambled.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“It’s me,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Logan’s voice came through the phone, and Remy let out a sigh of relief. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“The house isn’t safe. The boys are alright, we’re on our way towards Mill Drive. We need a ride.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“On my way, babe,” Remy confirmed. “You guys need anything?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Just a ride, for now.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got it. On my way now,” with that, Remy hung up and tucked his phone into his pocket before grabbing his wallet and keys. “I gotta pick up Lo, Pat, and Pat’s friend. If I’m not back in half an hour, and you don’t hear from us, shit went down,” he told the twins. The pair simply gave him a nod, and he left without another word.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remy took all the shortcuts he knew to get to Mill Drive as quickly as he could. He didn’t want to leave his friend and two shaken teenagers out in the dark any longer than he absolutely had to. The drive felt like it took hours with how wound up Remy was. Logan had said that the boys were fine, but hadn’t said anything about their own condition. All three of them were on the move, but Remy knew better than to think that meant Logan was fine; he’d seen Logan pull some stupid moves, despite being one of the smartest people Remy knew, and attempting to walk nearly two and a half miles with two teenagers in the dark while injured would certainly be something Logan would do.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Finally, Remy spotted Logan, Patton, and Emile walking along the side of the road. He pulled over, flashing his lights to grab their attention. He watched the three approach his car and get in; Logan taking the front passenger seat, Patton taking the seat behind Remy, and Emile taking the seat behind Logan. With everyone settled into the car and buckled in, Remy began to drive back towards the Bureau’s building.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The drive back to the office was quiet. Nobody seemed to know what to say, and Remy didn’t feel it would be right to put on any music. If it was just Logan he was picking up, the playlist Remy had put together of songs that Logan often liked to unwind to would have been playing over the car speakers, but with Patton and Emile in the car, seeming confused and shaken, he felt it might be better to just let them try to process what had just happened.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Once Remy had pulled into his usual parking space by the Bureau’s building, Logan ushered the boys out, and the two adults led the teens inside. Remy clipped his access card to his jacket like he always did, and Logan pulled their lanyard out and looped it over their head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan watched for the boy’s reactions to their workplace, especially Patton’s. They had never brought Patton to the office, nor had they told him what they did for a living. Their son looked around as they entered the building, approaching the reception desk where the late-night receptionist was sitting, looking bored until she noticed the four.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mx. Holmes, Mr. Moore, good evening,” she began, before glancing at the clock on her computer. “Well, good </span>
  <em>
    <span>morning</span>
  </em>
  <span>, I suppose.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We need two guest cards,” Logan simply stated. It was known to many in the building, even those who worked as the late-night skeleton team, that Logan wasn’t one for small talk, especially if there was something serious going on.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course,” the receptionist replied, pulling out two guest cards from the drawer of her desk. Each card was on a grey lanyard with the letters </span>
  <em>
    <span>SBIS</span>
  </em>
  <span> printed in black on it. The cards themselves were an off-white color, with the word </span>
  <em>
    <span>GUEST</span>
  </em>
  <span> in bold letters, and the words </span>
  <em>
    <span>Sanders Bureau of International Security</span>
  </em>
  <span> written underneath it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Put these on around your neck, just like your school IDs,” Logan told the boys, handing each one a lanyard. Patton and Emile each put a lanyard on without a word.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The twins are up in the office,” Remy told Logan, as the four made their way over to the elevator.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s fine. Patton’s met Roman before, if I remember correctly.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The one with the red motorcycle?” Patton questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s him,” Remy confirmed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ve met him a couple times.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan nodded a bit, and the elevator ride continued in silence. They led the boys down the hall to their office and opened the door, only to be practically tackled by Remus, who had been pacing by the window.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh my god, you’re okay!” they exclaimed, their voice muffled from their face being buried in Logan’s shoulder.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, Remus, I’m perfectly fine. Well, physically, that is,” Logan replied, lightly patting Remus’ back. After a long moment, Remus let go, allowing Logan to straighten out their shirt and tie before they turned to the boys. “The question now is, are you two alright?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think so, Mx. Holmes,” Emile replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I… I think so,” Patton answered. “But I think you have some things to explain, Cenn.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Let’s get you two settled and I’ll explain what I can,” Logan told him. “Remy, could you-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Drink run, coming right up. The usuals?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Make mine a Venti,” Logan stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Grande Honey Citrus Mint for both of us,” Roman told Remy.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Boys? Starbucks orders?” Remy prompted the two teens.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I usually get a Tall White Chocolate Mocha,” Emile stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Tall Hot Chocolate, for me,” Patton told Remy.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got it, babes. I’ll be back,” Remy stated, giving the teens each a pat on the shoulder before heading back out the door.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Janus and Virgil had gotten back to Virgil’s apartment and into his bedroom. Janus dropped his bag by the foot of Virgil’s bed, while Virgil got the makeup wipes he kept in his room. He carefully removed any trace of makeup from his friend’s face, and cleaned up the scratch on his cheek. After he was cleaned up, Janus went into the bathroom with his pajama pants and got changed, swapping his jeans for the pajama pants and taking off his binder, taking a few deep breaths once the tight garment was off.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Upon returning to Virgil’s room, Janus found that his friend had set up his laptop on a table by his bed and gathered his pillows and a couple of blankets. The soft materials were all made into a sort of nest, and Janus felt a small smile tug at the corner of his lips.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You settle in, I’ll pop some popcorn,” Virgil told him, ushering his friend towards the bed before heading to the kitchen.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus climbed onto Virgil’s bed, wrapping himself up in the yellow blanket he’d left with Virgil ages ago. He wrapped himself up like a burrito, already starting to relax from the familiar, comforting feeling of the blanket around him. Virgil returned after a little while, carrying a couple bags of microwave popcorn. Janus took the bags from his friend, while he got settled in his own blanket, and the pair simply pulled up a movie on Virgil’s laptop, settling for </span>
  <em>
    <span>The Black Cauldron </span>
  </em>
  <span>to start off with.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do you wanna talk about what happened?” Virgil questioned. “You don’t have to right now, if you don’t want to.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I told him you and I were thinking of going to the Fall Formal with some friends. He said I’d have to get a dress, because that’s what girls wear to a Formal. I told him I was planning to wear a suit, and he said that he wasn’t going to rent me a suit so I could </span>
  <em>
    <span>“pretend” </span>
  </em>
  <span>to be a boy,” Janus told his friend. “I said if he couldn’t see that he has a son, then he’s fucking blind, then called him an old, outdated piece of shit.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Damn,” Virgil replied. “You finally said it, man.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And look what it got me…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re still in touch with your Mom, right? You could call her.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I guess… But she lives in California, remember? I don’t want to have to leave the city.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She might still be able to help, though. Like she helped you get your binders, and helps you get your patches. You know she cares.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah… I guess she does. She’s never misgendered me, or said I was pretending.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And she helped you pick your name, right? You wanted to keep your initials, and she helped you find a fucking awesome name.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Alright, you’re right. I’ll call her. But, once it’s a decent hour.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil smiled, and Janus couldn’t help but smile a bit in return. He’d helped Virgil through more panic attacks than he could count, and had always known that Virgil would help him if he ever needed it, but it was nice to have the confirmation that Virgil really </span>
  <em>
    <span>was </span>
  </em>
  <span>on his side.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The pair settled in and watched a couple of movies, joking around and throwing popcorn at one another until they both eventually fell asleep on top of one another. As rough as the night had been, it turned out alright, in the end. There would probably be complications to follow, but for now, they were fine.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Questions and Answers</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Just a quick note!</p><p>There are a handful of misgendering/dead-naming moments in this chapter! None of them are malicious or really intentional, but I thought it best to at least mention these moments and give a little context:</p><p>Janus' mom refers to Logan as being Janus' uncle. She is fully accepting of Logan's identity, and does not actively try to misgender them. In this case, she is mostly attempting to use a term Janus will easily recognize when referring to Logan.</p><p>In that same vein, Janus and Virgil both refer to Logan with He/Him pronouns at first, until they learn that Logan is Agender and prefers They/Them, at which point they shift their language accordingly.</p><p>Meanwhile, Logan is unaware that Janus is Transgender, and thus misgenders and dead-names Janus without knowing it. After Janus corrects them, they make sure to use his proper name and pronouns.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Patton was sitting next to Emile on the small sofa in Logan’s office, close to one of the armchairs. Logan sat in the armchair to his left, Emile directly to his right. Next to Emile sat Roman, while Remus was slowly pacing back and forth, finding it difficult to sit still. When Remy eventually returned, he had a carrier from Starbucks in his hand with six drinks in it. Everything got passed out, and for a few moments, everyone was quiet, taking sips of their drinks. Finally, Patton spoke up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Cenn, what happened tonight?” he asked, looking towards his parent.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s a bit of a long story, Patton,” Logan admitted. “Where would you like me to start?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Who were those people at the house?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan paused for a moment, taking a moment to choose his words carefully. “I don’t know.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m gonna stop you right there, Calculator Watch,” Roman quickly butted in. “There were people </span>
  <em>
    <span>at your house</span>
  </em>
  <span> and you didn’t, y’know, </span>
  <em>
    <span>call for backup</span>
  </em>
  <span>?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There wasn’t time, Roman,” Logan stated firmly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay… Why did you have two packed bags in the closet?” Patton went on to ask. This was something he knew Logan would have an answer for.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ve kept go-bags packed for everyone living in the house for years,” Logan answered simply.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Go-bags? Like you hear about in spy movies?” Emile chimed in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s a similar concept,” Logan replied. “We have lists we use to keep track of what’s needed. The bags Patton and I have contain clothing, basic small first-aid kits, passport and ID blanks in case false papers end up being needed, some nonperishable food items, some emergency cash, and a handful of other things that would prove useful in a dire situation.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton nodded a bit, before glancing at the card on the lanyard around his neck. He picked it up and examined it a bit more closely. “Sanders Bureau of International Security,” he read aloud. “Wait, Emile, wasn’t there an information table about the Sanders Bureau of Security at the Junior/Senior College Fair last week?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, yeah!” Emile replied, pulling his phone out of his pocket. “I think I took photos of the display. Gimme a second.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Uncle Remy, you didn’t get a guest card. Does that mean you work here, too?” Patton questioned, turning to Remy who had taken a seat in the other armchair, while Remus had decided to sit on Logan’s desk.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yep,” he confirmed. “Lo and I both came on at just about the same time.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“All four of us did,” Roman chimed in. “We were all in training together.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Found ‘em!” Emile exclaimed. “Sanders Bureau of Security has a dedicated school, listed as Sanders Bureau Academy on the display.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s where we all graduated from,” Logan stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If this school teaches people the stuff they need to know to work here, then why does everything we were given just say Bureau of Security, and not Bureau of </span>
  <em>
    <span>International </span>
  </em>
  <span>Security? Are you guys secret or something?” Emile questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A great deal of the work we do here is considered Secret at the very least,” Logan answered. They sighed a bit, leaning forward so that their elbows rested on their knees, and looked directly at Patton and Emile. “Patton, Emile, I’m a secret agent. As are Roman, Remus, and Remy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton and Emile were stunned into silence. Both boys had had their suspicions for a time, but had never been able to bring it up. Now that they knew the truth, neither one knew what to say. After several moments of silence, Logan spoke up again, this time seeming to direct their words to Patton.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I apologize for keeping this a secret. I know there are things I should have told you sooner, but I didn’t want to worry you, and I didn’t want to put you in danger. I know now that I made a mistake in keeping this all from you. I’m sorry. If there is anything you’d like to ask in private, we could go for a walk around the building, and I’ll answer everything.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’d like that, Cenn…” Patton responded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Remy, Roman, Remus, if Emile has any other questions, do your best to answer them,” Logan told their partners. The three other men nodded, and with that, Logan and Patton stood from their seats, taking their drinks with them as they left the office.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Logan walked with their son down the empty halls of the office building. Their steps were a bit muffled on the thinly carpeted floor, and they couldn’t help but notice the way Patton looked around, taking in his surroundings. It reminded Logan of how they had been the first time they entered the training academy, wide-eyed and curious.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How long have you worked here?” Patton asked them, looking up at them with almost child-like curiosity.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, I started at the academy after attending a different school for a four year program, so at that time I was twenty-two. The academy program went for another four years, and I was activated as a Level One Agent at the age of twenty-six. I’ve been an active agent for fifteen years,” Logan answered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“When were you going to tell me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wasn’t sure,” Logan admitted. “With how dangerous this current assignment is, I knew I would be telling you soon, whether I wanted to or not. There is a chance this assignment could seriously injure Remy, Roman, Remus, and myself, or even kill us if we aren’t careful. You would have known by the end of this month, at the latest, no matter what. I just didn’t think it would be now, and especially not like this…” as they finished speaking, Logan and Patton reached an area of the building that served as a sort of common area, filled with comfortable chairs, a few tables, and wide windows that overlooked the city. The two sat down on a bench by one of the windows and sipped their Starbucks drinks in silence for a few moments.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Eventually, Patton broke the silence. “Cenn?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Did… Did Mom know?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan took a breath. It wasn’t often Patton wanted to speak about his mother. They had lost her when he was just five years old, leaving Patton with only a few fuzzy memories of the woman he saw in the family photo album. Her passing had been sudden, and though publicly it was listed as an unsolved murder, the Bureau knew better.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She did,” they finally answered. “She knew about what my job was, knew about past assignments I had worked on, about quite a bit of this, really. Looking back, she may have known </span>
  <em>
    <span>too </span>
  </em>
  <span>much.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It wasn’t just murder, was it, Cenn?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, it wasn’t. She was a target, to get to me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is that why you didn’t tell me…?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I only wanted to keep you safe, Patton… I had told your mother too much, and I wasn’t about to make the same mistake twice.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton nodded in what seemed to be understanding. He leaned on Logan’s shoulder, simply looking out over the city. Logan wrapped an arm around him, holding their son close.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s going to happen, now?” Patton asked, his voice soft and finally showing how tired the teen must have been.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“For now, we’ll be here at the office. You and Emile can rest, and I already sent for a team to go investigate the house to see what they can find. I’ll message Emile’s mother to update her on the situation once it’s a decent hour. You and I will likely need to stay at a safehouse for a time, until we can be certain things are safe for us.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Will we need to move? And what about Emile? Is it dangerous for him to know all this?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Considering the situation, it will be up to Emile and his mother to figure out what to do. As for the danger of you two knowing, you both showed interest in the academy’s information table, which tells me you may have been considering the field, yourselves. As for moving, I have no solid answer for that, unfortunately. We may be able to stay where we are, once things are cleaned up, or we may need to move to a different home in the area. I’ll do what I can to keep you at Silver Valley, but I can’t make any promises on that, either.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton nodded a bit, yawning quietly. Logan could see the boy was exhausted, and it was no surprise to them. Without a word, they had Patton get up and led him back to the office, where Emile was already asleep on the sofa, with the blanket that was usually draped over the back of it over his body. One of the armchairs, the one which had a fold-out bed contained inside it, was set up, with one of the couch pillows on it. Logan led their son over to the bed and had him lay down, removing their son’s shoes and glasses and draping a spare blanket they had in their desk over him. They planted a kiss on Patton’s forehead and bid Remy, Remus, and Roman goodnight, before dimming the office lights and taking a seat in the empty armchair, falling asleep there shortly after.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>In the morning, Janus woke to find he was alone in Virgil’s bed. He yawned and stretched, wincing a bit as he went to rub his hands over his face. The right side of his face was sore, and he didn’t doubt there was a bruise left behind from last night’s incident. The boy got up from his friend’s bed and made his way towards the kitchen, where he found Virgil helping his father make breakfast.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh shit, it’s the walking dead,” Virgil stated with a chuckle.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shut up, Hot Topic,” Janus quipped back with a tired smirk.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Awe, you think I’m hot,” Virgil replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil’s father chuckled. “Aren’t you two just rays of sunshine,” he joked. “Go ahead and take a seat, breakfast’s just about ready.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus and Virgil both took a seat at the table, while Virgil’s father finished making breakfast and brought the plates over to the table. It was a simple breakfast of eggs, toast, and bacon, but after a night like the boys had the night before, it was perfect.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I picked up a shift at the store, so I’ll be leaving in a couple of hours,” Virgil’s father told them. “You boys’ll be okay on your own, though, right?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, Dad,” Virgil replied after swallowing a mouthful of eggs.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course, Mr. Morrison,” Janus confirmed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The trio ate in relative silence, and the two teens went about cleaning up while Mr. Morrison got ready for work. After Virgil’s father left, the boys got dressed, despite the fact they were just going to hang out around Virgil’s apartment.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s about eight in the morning in California right now,” Virgil stated. “Think your Mom’s up?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Maybe? She’d usually get up at like, six, I think,” Janus answered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Only one way to find out,” Virgil stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus nodded a bit, pulling his phone out of his bag. He pulled up his Mom’s number and called it, sitting in the chair by Virgil’s desk as the phone rang.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Hello?” </span>
  </em>
  <span>A woman’s voice came through the phone, and Janus couldn’t help but relax.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Mom…” he replied. “It’s Janus.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Hey, Little Snake! It’s good to hear from you,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>his mother stated. He could practically hear her smile. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“What’s up? You sound tired.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Dad and I uh… We had an argument last night,” Janus confessed. “It um… It got physical…”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Oh, honey… Are you alright?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“He slapped me. I’ve got a scratch on my right cheek, and it’s bruised.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“That bastard,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Janus rarely heard his mother curse, so hearing those words come through the phone, practically dripping with anger, took him a bit by surprise. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Where are you right now? Do you want to come stay with me? I can start making arrangements if you want to come stay here.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m staying at Virgil’s right now. Been here since last night. And, I’m not really sure. I’d rather not leave SVHS, y’know?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Good, good. I don’t want you going back to your father’s, alright? Stay at Virgil’s for now. I’m going to make a couple of calls. If I remember correctly, your uncle still lives in the area, I’ll see if they can help, alright?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“I have an uncle?” Janus didn’t remember an uncle ever being spoken about.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I have two siblings, Jan. I’m not in contact with my older brother, but I still talk to my younger sibling once in a while. I’ll give them a call, okay?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus took a breath before answering. “Okay. I’ll have my phone on me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I’ll talk to them and have them call you, then. Tell Virgil I say hi. I love you, Little Snake.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Love you too, Mom.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>With that, the conversation ended, and Janus hung up. He made sure his phone was on sound, so he would know if he got a call.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, you’ve got a surprise uncle?” Virgil questioned, looking over from his bed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Two, apparently. She’s only in contact with one, though,” Janus told him. “She’s gonna call him and see if they can work something out.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What did she say for right now?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“To stay here; she doesn’t want me going back to </span>
  <em>
    <span>his </span>
  </em>
  <span>place. Oh, and she says “Hi”, by the way.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nice.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“All I can do now is wait.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Video games?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Video games.”</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Logan woke up with a yawn and stretched. They found they were stiff and sore, but quickly realized why; they had been asleep in one of the armchairs in their office due to the previous night’s events. They found Emile and Patton still asleep, and decided to go walk around a bit in an attempt to wake up. They left the teens a note and grabbed a set of clothes out of their go-bag, before heading out of the office to wake up and get changed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>After they had gotten themself cleaned up as best they could, Logan returned to their office. The two teenagers were still asleep, which wasn’t surprising to them at all, considering the events of last night. They put their other clothes away and grabbed their phone, sending Emile’s mother a text as they began to leave the office once again, deciding to let the two teens sleep. Emile’s mother was likely still asleep, as well, considering the woman had likely worked late last night, so they didn’t expect a call for some time. To their surprise, a call came through within ten minutes, though upon closer inspection, Logan found it wasn’t Emile’s mother, but rather someone he was much closer to.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“April?” they questioned, wondering why their sister might be calling.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Hey, Lo,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>April replied. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“I was wondering if I could ask a favor of you.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do you need?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“JD just called. An argument got physical last night, it’s not safe at Joseph’s. I was wondering if you could help?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll see what I can do. Patton and I have our own issues, right now, as well.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“What happened?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“We had a break-in last night. I’m not sure exactly how much damage was done. I’m sure things will be alright, though. We’ll figure something out.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I hope everything goes alright, Lo. I’ll send you JD’s number, and you two can talk.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course. I’ll call you later when things get settled.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Thanks, Lo. Bye-bye.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Goodbye, April,” Logan returned. Just a moment after they hung up, they received a text from April with the promised phone number, which they saved to their phone before calling.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Janus was sitting on the floor of Virgil’s living room with his friend, laughing as they played Mario Kart. Janus cursed as he came in third behind Virgil and one of the AI racers and flopped back onto the floor.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I hate you so much,” he stated, though there was clearly no malice behind his words.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Love ya too, Snek Boi,” Virgil replied with a laugh. Suddenly, they both heard Janus’ phone start ringing. “Who’s that?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m not sure, don’t know the number. Might be my uncle?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You should probably answer that before it goes to voicemail.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Janus confirmed, quickly picking up his phone and answering. “Hello?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Hello, I’m looking to speak with Juliette Prescott, is she available?” </span>
  </em>
  <span>the voice on the other end of the line was unfamiliar, and Janus cringed a bit at the use of his old name.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Who is this?” Janus questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“My name is Logan Holmes. I am trying to get in contact with my niece to discuss a few matters.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nephew.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Excuse me?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus smirked a little bit to himself at the confusion he heard in Logan’s voice. “You have a nephew, not a niece. My name isn’t Juliette, it’s </span>
  <em>
    <span>Janus</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I see, forgive me then, Janus. April didn’t mention that you were transitioning.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, you’re my uncle, then?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I suppose. Though, that term isn’t </span>
  </em>
  <b>
    <em>exactly</em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span> correct for me.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus cocked an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I am Agender, and use They/Them pronouns. Seeing as there is no formally recognized gender neutral term for an aunt or uncle, I ask that you simply call me Logan.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“I can do that,” Janus confirmed. He felt a bit better knowing that he wasn’t the only person in the family who wasn’t Cis. “So, Mom told you about what happened?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“April told me that an argument between you and Joseph turned physical and that it isn’t safe for you to go back, but that was all she told me. My son and I are currently dealing with the fallout of a break-in last night, but I know what Joseph is like, and as such I cannot in good conscience allow you to return to him,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Logan responded. Janus couldn’t help but note how they spoke in a near monotone sort of voice.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, things got a bit heated… I knew I was kind of on borrowed time, but I didn’t realize how unstable the ground under my feet really was.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I’ll be getting things arranged for my son and myself for the rest of the weekend, I can get you written in for those arrangements, as well.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“I mean, I’m with a friend of mine right now. I was planning on staying until Monday morning,” Janus told Logan.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I see. That actually helps a bit. I will get things sorted out for my son and I, and be in touch with you tomorrow evening. Would that be alright?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course. I’ll have my phone on me, just in case. Thank you, Logan.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I would never leave family behind, Janus. It was a pleasure to speak with you.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“And you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>With a final goodbye, Janus heard Logan hang up, and did the same. He set his phone aside, and ran a hand through his hair, ruffling it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So?” Virgil prompted.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’re not bad, I guess,” Janus told him. “I guess they had a break-in last night, so they’re figuring that out. They’ll be in touch Sunday night once they kinda figure stuff out.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Logan’s Agender and uses They/Them pronouns.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ah, got it. So, I’m guessing you’ll be here for the weekend?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yep.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil chuckled, picking up his controller. “Then we’ve got plenty of time for me to kick your ass on Rainbow Road.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The two boys laughed a bit, and Janus made sure to save Logan’s number before they returned to their game. Janus was glad that he at least had a few people on his side, because right now, he sure as hell needed all the help he could get.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>As the day went on, Logan made several calls, met with different agents, ensured that Emile got home safely, and even spoke with the Bureau’s Director, Thomas Sanders. By that evening, it was determined that Logan and Patton could go back to the house to inspect the damage and see if anything was missing from the home.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The two returned home to find a mess of pulled drawers, scattered papers, and broken glass. The window to the side door for the garage was broken, as was one of the windows in Logan’s room upstairs. Their office was in rough shape, with their main harddrive having been pulled from the computer, the desk drawers pulled out of place with their contents scattered, and a couple of their monitors were broken. The rest of the house was a bit of a mess, though nothing that couldn’t be cleaned up. The only other thing missing, aside from Logan’s main computer harddrive, was Patton’s old laptop which had been on the coffee table in the living room. It wasn’t much of a loss, considering the old machine no longer held a proper charge and needed to be plugged in to function, and the charging cable had been left behind.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remy stopped by to help the pair clean up. Together, the three cleaned up the broken glass, got the broken windows boarded up, and got most of the mess cleaned up. Logan was glad that they routinely backed up the files on their main computer to an external harddrive which they kept hidden in the office, and that the security system they had set up would encrypt all the files still on the main harddrive if it was triggered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Despite the fact that things seemed safe, the Bureau stationed agents to keep an eye on the house for the rest of the weekend, while Logan and Patton stayed with Remy. When Monday came, Remy drove Patton to school, and Logan told Patton that they would pick them up after school. Patton met up with Emile, returning the backpack that got left behind in the chaos of Friday night. There were still some questions revolving around what was going to happen from this point on, but for now, the two friends could be thankful that at least they had a few answers.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Family Matters</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I don't really have any major content warnings for this chapter!</p><p>The only thing I can really find is Remus pulling a Remus and calling Roman a dork (as well as the original meaning of that term), so it's a pretty tame one.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“So, you’re supposed to meet Logan after school, right?” Virgil asked Janus. They had both already finished their Math work, including the homework, and Janus was just working on the reading he had for English.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, I’m supposed to,” he confirmed. “Logan and their son.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Text me how it goes,” Virgil told him. “Oh, and make sure you text me where you’ll be, so my Dad can bring your bike down.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got it,” Janus replied. Soon after he spoke, the bell rang to dismiss the students. He and Virgil packed up their things, and Janus double checked that he had his yellow notebook before leaving with his friend, heading towards the front doors of the school.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Just outside his Math class, Patton met up with Emile so they could walk out of the school together. Patton had taken note of the pink bracelet his friend wore today, indicating that it was a feminine day.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, are you and Logan able to go home today?” Emile asked, walking by Patton’s side.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, I think so. That’s what they said, anyway. We’ve got a couple windows boarded up, but nothing really bad, and the people they had keeping an eye on the house said that nobody came by at all, so they think it’ll be safe,” he replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That was a crazy night,” Emile stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No kidding,” Patton giggled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, good luck, Pat. I’ll see you tomorrow.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“See ya, Em!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The two parted ways just outside the school, and Patton looked for Logan in the pick-up lane beyond the buses. He hurried across the crosswalk, and looked around again, finally managing to spot Logan’s dark blue car. He started heading towards it, a smile on his face as he went.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Logan stood outside their car, waiting for Patton outside the school. They watched the students exit the building, getting on buses, into cars, or simply milling about. They couldn’t help but watch one student heading towards a car. The boy in the black and grey hoodie looked oddly familiar, though Logan couldn’t quite put their finger on why. They simply shrugged to themself, watching as the boy got into the car, and the car drove away.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A few moments later, Logan spotted Patton making his way over. They smiled, opening their arms to offer Patton a hug, which was quickly accepted. Patton was never shy about his affection towards Logan, and really couldn’t care much less if his classmates saw the hugs they exchanged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’re just waiting on your cousin, then we can head home,” Logan told him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, right. I almost forgot about that. He’s gonna be staying with us for a while?” Patton replied, setting his baby blue backpack on the floor of the front seat, rather than in the back.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s right,” Logan answered. After another moment or so, they spotted a head of medium blonde hair headed towards them. When the boy got closer, he could see a scratch on his right cheek, and knew it was likely the boy they were waiting on. “Janus Prescott?” they prompted.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s me,” the boy replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wait, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Janus Prescott</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Patton cut in. “Aren’t you the guy I returned that notebook to on Friday? The yellow one, with snake stickers all over it?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Uh, yeah. Patton, right?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yep!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You boys know one another?” Logan questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’re in Math class together,” Patton told them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I see. Well, Patton, this is Janus, April’s son,” Logan formally introduced.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton smiled brightly. “I hope you like staying with us, Janus! Cenn’s great; I’d even go so far as to say they’re-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Patton, no…” Logan argued weakly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Cenn</span>
  </em>
  <span>-sational!” Patton exclaimed, falling into a fit of giggles as Logan rolled their eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Patton, no,” they repeated, trying to stifle their chuckle.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Patton, </span>
  <em>
    <span>yes</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” the boy replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh my god, why,” Janus half-groaned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Because why not,” Patton simply replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The trio got into Logan’s car and buckled in, and Logan started to drive them home. Patton turned in his seat to look at Janus.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you going to the Fall Formal this year?” he asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A friend of mine and I were planning on going. We just need to get our hands on a couple of suits,” Janus replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A friend of mine from college dabbles in fashion design. I’m sure she’d be willing to help you out, if you’d like,” Logan offered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wouldn’t want to impose or anything,” Janus played off.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s no issue, Janus,” Logan reassured him. “You’re family, after all.”</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>When the three arrived at Logan’s home, Janus couldn’t help but look around a bit, taking in his surroundings. The house was fairly nice, with a full kitchen with an island between it and the dining area, a nice living room, and a hall that contained the downstairs bathroom and the guest room, which would be Janus’ room until things could get swapped around. Once that happened, Janus’ room would be in the room that was currently Logan’s home office, situated beside Patton’s room and just down the hall from Logan’s.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus followed Patton to the guest room, and set his bag down on the floor by the bed. Once Patton left the room, Janus shut the door and quickly stripped off his jacket and T-shirt, and pulled off his binder, breathing deeply as he set the garment aside. Soon he pulled on the purple T-shirt he’d worn at Virgil’s on Saturday, the one with the snake on an icecream cone, and his jacket, having found that the pairing mostly hid the shape of his chest. He’d need to get back into his old room within a few days to get his patches, though he was glad that he’d just randomly grabbed a few on Friday, rather than counting them out, as it left him with enough to last until Thursday. As he tucked his patches back into his bag, Janus heard a knock at the door, and went to answer it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah?” he addressed, finding Patton on the other side of the door.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Cenn wanted me to see if you had any ideas for dinner tonight,” he stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Uh, I’m not sure,” Janus shrugged. “What sort of options are there?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, Cenn knows how to make some really good Chicken Sausage and Broccoli Flatbread.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That sounds </span>
  <em>
    <span>so </span>
  </em>
  <span>good,” Janus stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We can have that, if you want.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’d like that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton smiled brightly at him, “I’ll tell Cenn! Oh, and did you understand </span>
  <em>
    <span>anything</span>
  </em>
  <span> in Mr. Claymore’s class today?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, I got the homework done before class even ended.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Could you help me? I’m pretty lost…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course. I had to help Virgil with it, earlier, you might be stuck on the same stuff.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Who’s Virgil?” Patton questioned, tilting his head a bit.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Remember that kid with all the emo band buttons on his lanyard who was being a little shit and tried to ride off on me while we were talking on Friday?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The guy you called </span>
  <em>
    <span>Panic! At the Everywhere</span>
  </em>
  <span>?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s Virgil.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, okay!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus couldn’t help but chuckle a bit. “Go grab your math work, I’ll come help.”</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Remus lay on his sofa, staring at the ceiling of his apartment. He was supposed to be getting some things done; cleaning up the kitchen, putting his clothes away, watering his plants. They </span>
  <em>
    <span>knew</span>
  </em>
  <span> they needed to get at least one of those done today, and they </span>
  <em>
    <span>wanted</span>
  </em>
  <span> to do something productive, but they just couldn’t get themself to actually </span>
  <em>
    <span>do</span>
  </em>
  <span> any of it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The silence was broken by Remus’ phone ringing, and upon seeing the name on the screen, he answered it. “Yeah…?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Good morning, my Chaotic Counterpart,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Roman’s voice cheerfully floated through the phone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mornin’,” Remus mumbled. “What’s up?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“You sound like shit.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“One of those days.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Need some brotherly backup?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Could you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“On my way, Re.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, Ro,” Remus replied. He hung up the phone and set it aside, going back to simply staring at the ceiling. Roughly fifteen minutes later, they heard Roman knock at the door before letting himself in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Trash Gremlin, where you-” he cut himself off as he came into the living room and spotted Remus on the couch. “There you are. C’mon, up we go,” he urged, stepping towards Remus and grabbing their shoulders, getting his sibling to sit up properly. “What’s on the To-Do list?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Um, I’ve got clothes that have to get put away, kitchen needs to get cleaned, and it’s watering day for the plants,” Remus told him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Which of those is gonna be the easiest to do?” Roman questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Um… the plants? I made pasta last night, so the water’s already in the thing, they’ll be getting a treat, today,” Remus answered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then let’s do that. You water them, and I’ll turn them,” his brother offered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay,” Remus replied, forcing themself to get up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He and Roman made their way over to where Remus had a little indoor garden with several different types of plants. A couple of Spider Plants and a Boston Fern hung from hooks on the ceiling, a Hawaiian Umbrella Tree Bonsai sat in a large pot on the floor, and a handful of succulents occupied a display Remus had made out of a piece of broken furniture he’d found left on the side of the road. There was a Zebra Plant, three or so Rebutia, a Bird’s Nest Cactus, a couple of Living Rocks, and an Aloe Vera Remus had gotten while the two of them were Seniors in high school, which was still healthy and stood in a good-sized pot, propped up on a little table Remus had gotten at some point. The twins got to work watering and turning the plants, quietly chatting as they did.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That Aloe’s still hanging on,” Roman observed as he helped Remus turn the plant.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course she is,” Remus replied. “She’s been thriving since I moved in here, actually. Between the natural light from the window, and the light from the grow lamp I use on the others, she’s doing really well.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Still can’t believe this is the same half-dead little plant you found knocked over at the back of the display in the garden center.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know, right? She’s come a long way.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remus smiled a bit, and the two finished taking care of the plants. After the watering was done, Roman turned to his brother. “Okay, watering’s done. Now there’s the kitchen to take care of, and your clothes to get put away. What’s gonna be the next easiest thing to get done?” When Remus didn’t reply, Roman tried a different approach, “Which of those two things can we more easily break down into little pieces?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Um… My clothes?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think so, too. Let’s get that started, then,” Roman smiled. The pair made their way to Remus’ bedroom, where a basket of clean laundry sat on the bed. Roman dumped out the clothes onto the bed and set the basket aside. “So, how should we break this down?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Maybe shirts first? Then pants? They’re the easiest stuff to find and put away,” Remus answered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You want me to sort through and find them, and you can hang them up in the closet?” After Remus nodded in confirmation, Roman smiled a bit. “Let’s get to it, then.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remus stood by their closet, while Roman stayed by the bed, sorting through Remus’ clothes. When he came across a shirt, Roman would turn it right-side-out, and pass it to Remus, who would then put the shirt on a hanger and put it in the closet. They did the same with Remus’ pants, with Roman passing the articles to his brother and in turn, Remus would fold them in half, drape them on the hanger, and put them away.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The pair had found that while Roman could do with having everything labeled and color-coded, and rely on a fairly strict routine, Remus couldn’t do the same. Thus, Remus didn’t have a usual dresser, but rather a set of cubbies where they kept smaller articles like socks and underwear, so they could see what was there. His closet didn’t have a door, which made it easier to get into. Some might say it made things look messy, but Remus had learned not to care. This is what he needed to do in order to get things done, and there was nothing wrong with that.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman helped Remus fold and put away their socks and underwear, and they moved to clean up the kitchen, the last thing on Remus’ To-Do list. Similar to how Remus’ closet door had been removed, the doors on the kitchen cabinets had been taken off, as well. Sometimes clean dishes got left in the drying rack, but usually they did manage to get them into the cabinet where they belonged. Instead of having a drawer for silverware, Remus used different sized pencil cups, and simply kept them on the counter.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, what needs to get done out here?” Roman asked, leaning against the counter and looking at Remus.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The dishes in the sink need to be washed, the counters need to get wiped down, the oven needs to be cleaned out, and I need to go through the fridge so I can go grocery shopping,” Remus replied. They felt a bit better now that a couple of the tasks were out of the way.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay,” Roman nodded. “So, the oven is probably an easier one. Wipe it out, and put it on the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Clean </span>
  </em>
  <span>setting. Think we should do that first?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Remus confirmed. “Then we can go through the fridge, so if there’s stuff in containers that needs to go, the containers can get washed with the other dishes?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Perfect,” Roman smiled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The pair set about wiping out Remus’ oven, which really hadn’t been in as bad of shape as Remus had thought. Once the oven was put on the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Clean </span>
  </em>
  <span>setting, they started on the fridge. Containers of leftovers that needed to get tossed were emptied out, and the containers put in the sink with the other dirty dishes, while anything else that was spoiled was tossed out. Roman tied off the trash bag and took it out to the chute in the hallway, while Remus started wiping down the shelves in the fridge. When Roman got back, they went about doing the dishes. Roman washed the dishes, while Remus dried them off and put them away where they belonged. Once that was finished, they wiped down Remus’ countertops, and put the dish towels into the hamper to get washed later.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And just like that, we’re all set!” Roman exclaimed, doing a little spin in the kitchen and motioning to the space around him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remus couldn’t help but laugh a bit. “Yeah. Thanks for the help, bro.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No problem, Sib. Sometimes you just need a little help to get going.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s still frustrating that I can’t do shit like this myself sometimes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah… But, you’ve got someone right here who gets it. If you need me to stop by and help, you know I’ll do it. God knows you’ve done it plenty for me over the years.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remus smiled and nodded, “You know it, Whale Penis.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Did… Did you just call me a Dork?” Roman questioned, looking at his brother.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remus simply laughed, while Roman rolled his eyes. The twins simply talked for a while, chatting about whatever came to mind. After a while, Roman left, heading off to run some errands of his own. Remus smiled to themselves, and took a seat in the living room, turning on the TV, thankful that they had family who understood the way their brain worked.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Random Follow-up Info (in case anyone's curious)!</p><p>The ways Roman and Remus cope with their ADHD are actually a lot of things I've found that a number of people with ADHD use! I personally use more of Roman's methods where I can; keeping a routine, labeling and writing things down, and the like. ADHD is different for every person who deals with it, and there's no wrong way to manage things. You just do what works for you.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Mission Totally Possible</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“So, we’ve gotta figure out a way to get into your old room and get your stuff,” Virgil stated. The two boys were talking outside the school, watching other students get on their buses or meet up with their rides home. Logan had told Janus and Patton that they wouldn’t be able to come pick them up, and that someone named Remy would be coming to get them instead, but he would be a bit late. That left Janus and Virgil time to chat.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Janus confirmed. “If I remember right, he’s supposed to be checking with some of the runners he’s got in the area, which’ll give us a window of roughly three hours tonight from eight to eleven. I realized after we left for your place that I don’t have my key, so it must’ve fallen out of my pocket in the bastard’s office, so we’ll have to figure out a way in.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shit… So, either we find a way in through a window, or we figure something else out,” Virgil groaned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Janus, Remy just texted me, he’ll be here in about five minutes,” Patton’s voice stated just behind him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Huh? Oh, right,” he replied. “Thanks, Patton.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Your old man doesn’t keep windows unlocked, does he?” Virgil asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nope,” Janus sighed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ll figure this out, Jan,” his friend reassured. “I’ll call later and we’ll try to plan something out.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Right. See you later, Purp Man,” Janus returned, watching his friend ride off on his bike.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What was that all about?” Patton questioned, tilting his head to the side a bit.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’re trying to figure out the best way to get into my old room to get some of my stuff so I can stop having to borrow your clothes,” Janus replied, motioning to the clothes he had on, which included a pair of Patton’s jeans which didn’t quite fit Janus’ frame, and one of Patton’s pastel yellow T-shirts with a pattern of cats all over it, which he wore under his usual black jacket. “Not really my style, y’know?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, going off the fact you guys were talking about if he keeps his windows unlocked, I’m gonna guess you don’t have a key, anymore?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nope, dropped it somewhere Friday night.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton went quiet for a minute, tapping his chin. “Do you know what kind of locks are on the doors?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’re just standard door locks, nothing special,” Janus told him. “Why?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You gonna need a ride there?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You didn’t answer my question.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes or no, silly. Do you need a ride, or are you just gonna somehow get whatever you’re grabbing on a couple of bikes?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You can drive?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, yeah,” Patton shrugged. “Cenn took me to get my permit when I turned fifteen. As long as you’re not planning on going between one and five in the morning, we’re set.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A ride would be good, I guess,” Janus told him. “But why do you need to know about the locks?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ll see, I swear. He doesn’t have a camera system or anything like that, does he?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The cameras are set up, but they don’t work or anything. They’re just deterrents,” Janus shrugged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Great,” Patton smiled. “Oh, hey, there’s Remy!” he exclaimed, spotting Remy’s black car pulling into the pick-up lane. Janus stumbled a bit when his cousin grabbed his wrist and pulled him towards the crosswalk to meet up with their ride.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>“Hey, babes,” Remy addressed as the boys climbed into his car. Both teens settled into the backseat, and Patton pulled out his phone. “How was school?” he asked, watching in the rearview mirror as his passengers buckled in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We got our tests back that we took on Friday,” Patton told him. “I got a ninety-eight!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nice, Patton-cake!” Remy praised. “What about you, uh…” Remy trailed off, unable to remember the other boy’s name.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Janus,” came the blonde boy’s reply. “I got a one-oh-two.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What?! You got the bonus question right, too? I heard everyone saying it was a trick question,” Patton said, looking over in surprise.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“To be fair, a couple of my answers were lucky guesses, because I probably used the wrong formula and just had to go with what made sense,” Janus shrugged. “The bonus question was kind of a half trick, I guess. It could be solved using what we’ve already learned, but it’s tedious. I was doing some advanced work before the test, stuff from the unit we started today, so I knew the trick to solve it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Huh, cool,” Patton replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nice work, my guy,” Remy replied. “Anything else happen?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Emile and I got to mess with our classmates’ heads in A Block with our Change Blindness presentation,” Patton relayed. “We even had Elliot move seats in the middle of our presentation, from their usual seat to the seat near Valerie, and nobody noticed until we pointed it out. It was really funny.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I heard about that,” Janus stated. “I’d be surprised if you guys didn’t ace that project.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, Janus!” Patton smiled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Interclass Play sign-ups are wrapping up at the end of the week, then meetings start for them,” Janus told Remy.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re doing Interclass?” Patton asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Janus answered. “Stage crew, though, I think. I don’t think I could actually </span>
  <em>
    <span>perform </span>
  </em>
  <span>in front of a crowd like that, as fun as it sounds.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You never know until you try,” Remy stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I guess,” the blonde boy shrugged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sounds like a pretty crazy day for Pat. Anything else interesting happen in any of your classes, Janus?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, we finished the book we were reading in my English class, so now we have to start getting ready for the test,” Janus told him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What book were you guys reading?” Patton asked him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>The Giver</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Janus replied. “Mrs. Felix had us read it to study world-building in writing. It’s not the first time I’ve read it, so I’m not concerned about the test.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think I read that in middle school,” Patton mused.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I own a copy, if you ever want to read it again.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll think about it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remy smiled a bit, listening to the boys talk. He couldn’t help but think that Janus looked and sounded extremely familiar. He made a mental note to ask Logan about that, later. He dropped the boys off at Logan’s place, and drove off, heading back to the Bureau offices.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Virgil got home and locked up his bike, before heading inside and to his room. As he set down his backpack, his phone started to ring, and he picked it up. “What’s up, Lord of the Lies?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Patton’s going to drive us to the bastard’s place tonight,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Janus’ voice came through the phone. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Apparently he’s got some kind of plan to get us inside, too, and he’s offering to lend a hand.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sweet, what’s his plan?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I don’t know, he won’t tell me. We’ll see what he does, I guess.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, I’m guessing be ready by ten of?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Yep.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got it,” Virgil replied. He couldn’t help but smirk a bit at the possibilities Patton’s involvement presented.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>At ten of eight, Virgil was ready, and Janus texted him that he and Patton were waiting outside. He pulled on his hoodie and went to meet with them, and Patton drove them to Janus’ old house.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>“You guys ready for this?” Patton asked, pulling up to Janus’ old house. He wasn’t dressed in his usual clothes, but rather a set of dark-wash jeans and a black long-sleeved shirt.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Born ready, Pat,” Virgil replied, giving him a two-fingered salute.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ready as I’ll ever be,” Janus answered, taking a slow breath.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Let’s do this, then,” Patton stated, shutting off the engine of Logan’s car and getting out. Janus and Virgil followed suit. “You’re positive that nobody’s home, Janus?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nobody’s here. The old shit’s out on business for the next three hours, and it was only us in the house.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good,” Patton nodded, approaching the front door. Just like Janus had said, the cameras didn’t seem to be operational, and there was only a standard door lock.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, what’s the plan, here?” Virgil questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s simple, silly. We get in, get Jan’s stuff, and get out,” Patton replied, kneeling down by the door and pulling a couple of bobby pins out of his pocket.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And how are we going to do </span>
  <em>
    <span>that</span>
  </em>
  <span>? We don’t have a key,” Virgil reminded him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We don’t need one,” Patton told him. He unfolded one of the bobby pins and bent the end a bit, and bent the other intact pin. He used the bent doubled-over pin to apply pressure to the lock, and inserted the unfolded one above it. The boy went quiet as he started to work the improvised lockpick over the pins to find the proper one to start with. After a minute of work, Patton was able to remove the top bobby pin, and used the one still in the lock to turn it and open the door.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Holy shit, your cousin’s a pastel badass,” Virgil muttered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why do you know how to pick a lock?” Janus questioned, staring at his cousin as the boy stood.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Cenn taught me when I was a kid,” Patton shrugged. “I liked learning how stuff worked, so they’d take stuff apart with me and teach me. One time we took apart a door lock and they taught me how they work, and how to pick them, in case something happened.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sweet,” Virgil smirked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, let’s get going. You said we have three hours, time’s ticking, slow pokes!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ve got boxes in the closet from when we first moved in, I think. We can take some of those,” Janus stated. “And I have a large and small suitcase and a duffel bag in my room.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Let’s get to it, then,” Patton smiled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The three teens made their way inside, shutting the door behind them, and went up to Janus’ room. Patton looked around the room curiously. Three of the walls were painted pale pink, with the fourth being painted purple, and they were covered in posters. The posters were for various movies, TV shows, and some were dedicated to different types of snakes. Janus’ desk and bed frame were white, and the covers on his bed were mostly yellow, and he had black sheets underneath. He watched as Janus went into his closet and pulled out the two suitcases and duffel bag he’d spoken about. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil and Patton started to take Janus’ posters off the walls, using a pair of box cutters to simply cut the looped pieces of tape that held them up. As they took down the posters, the two boys rolled them up, and used elastics from a little container on Janus’ desk to secure them. While they worked on the posters, Janus started packing his clothes into the duffel bag, packing his T-shirts, pants, socks, underwear, and a few sports bras, and grabbing his spare sneakers and his boots. He didn’t even bother looking at the dresses, blouses, and skirts that hung in the closet, and ignored the high heeled shoes, ballet flats, and Mary Janes that were shoved to the back. He grabbed his snake jacket and makeup kit and packed them away, as well, before zipping up the bag. After a quick glance towards his friend and cousin, Janus grabbed his testosterone patches and tucked them into one of the pockets of his bag.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Anything else you’re looking to grab, J? We’ve got ninety minutes, tops,” Virgil stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There’s stuff I have to grab out of my desk, and out of the drawers under my bed,” Janus stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Let’s get to it, then,” Patton urged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The three boys worked quickly. Virgil grabbed Janus’ sketchbooks, a couple of notebooks, and his two main pencil cases from the desk drawers and packed them into one of the suitcases. Meanwhile, Patton and Janus went through the pair of drawers that were situated under Janus’ bed, pulling out a couple of shoebox sized boxes each and packing them away. Patton didn’t say a word as Janus grabbed the last thing he felt he needed to, a black, yellow, and green stuffed snake, and packed it into the suitcase before zipping it shut.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think that’s everything,” Janus stated, taking one last look around the room.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You sure?” Virgil asked. He didn’t want anything important to get left behind.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah. Not leaving anything I care about behind, at least. All the stuff from ballet can burn for all I care,” Janus told him. “Let’s get this stuff to the car and get going before the old asshole gets back.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton and Virgil both nodded, helping to bring everything out to the car. Patton and Janus had to make a second trip upstairs while Virgil worked to arrange everything, and when they returned, Janus made sure to lock the door to make it seem as if they hadn’t entered the home. The three boys got everything packed away in the car and got in, buckling their seatbelts as Patton started the engine.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Pat, you might wanna step on it,” Janus urged, glancing out the rear window.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why?” Patton asked, turning in his seat a bit to see what was out there.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s him,” Virgil stated. “Fucking hell, he’s back early.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Patton, drive,” Janus muttered, glancing towards his cousin.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“On it!” Patton exclaimed, shifting the car into drive and pulling away from the curb. He drove them down a couple of odd side-roads to confuse Janus’ father if he was following them, before slowing the car down to a normal speed as they got to the main road again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Virgil, do you want me to bring you back to your place?” Patton asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Patton and I told Logan that the three of us were going to a movie and were probably going to grab a bite to eat, so we’d be home late,” Janus told his friend. “They said you could spend the night, if you wanted.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Just drop me off, Pat, I’ll be fine,” Virgil answered. “Thanks for the offer, though.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No problem, Virgil,” Patton smiled, heading towards Virgil’s building once again. He dropped Virgil off, and started to head back to Logan’s with Janus.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Patton, you made that go from Mission Near-Impossible, to Mission Totally Possible,” Janus told his cousin. “Thanks for that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course!” Patton replied. “I know this was all really sudden, so I thought I’d help you out. No doubt you’ll be feeling better dressed in your own clothes and all that,” he smiled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus smiled a bit and nodded, “Yeah, no doubt.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The pair made their way back to Logan’s house in a comfortable silence. Patton and Janus entered the house through the front door, and found that Logan wasn’t in the living room. With that discovery, they went to get Janus’ things out of the car and brought them to the guest room. Just as they were bringing in Janus’ last two bags, they nearly ran into Logan, who had been coming down from their home office to see what all the footsteps walking around could be.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Did you three enjoy your movie?” they asked, arms crossed over their chest. When the two teens didn’t answer, Logan set their hands on their hips, looking down at them. “You boys didn’t go to a movie at all, did you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We did not,” Janus answered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Where were you, then?” Logan questioned. After a moment of silence passed between them, they spoke again. “I want an answer, gentlemen.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We uh… We went to get Janus’ things from his old room,” Patton confessed, shifting a bit. “We didn’t want you to worry, so we just told you we were going to a movie…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There we go,” Logan mused. “Now, I’m not upset that you boys went to get Janus’ things,” they began, and tilted their head when Patton seemed to relax a bit. “I </span>
  <em>
    <span>am</span>
  </em>
  <span>, however, disappointed that you lied to me, Patton. I understand that you didn’t want to worry me, but if something had happened to you three, I wouldn’t have known where you were.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sorry, Cenn,” Patton replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I apologize as well, Logan,” Janus spoke up. “The movie cover-up was mine and Virgil’s idea, not Patton’s.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wasn’t sure whether we should tell you what we were really planning on or not,” Patton told them. “Janus and Virgil suggested we tell you we were going to a movie.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Alright,” Logan said calmly. “I am disappointed with both of you, but I want to assure you that I’m not upset with you. Patton, I want you to hand over your key to my car and your licence,” they stated, holding out their hand. Patton turned his gaze downwards, though he did as he was told, placing the items in Logan’s hand. “No driving for one week,” Logan simply stated. “And I want both of you home right after school for the next week, no going over to Virgil’s, and Virgil can’t come here for that time, the same goes for Emile. Am I understood?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, Cenn.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Understood, Logan.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good. Now, I’ll let you two get those bags to Janus’ room. Is there anything else out in the car?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This is the last of it,” Janus told them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll let you boys go, then. And get some sleep, you two still have school, tomorrow.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course,” Patton replied. Logan nodded a bit and made their way back upstairs, while Patton and Janus brought the bags in their hands to Janus’ room.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That went better than I expected,” Janus stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What were you expecting?” Patton questioned. “Cenn’s stern, yeah, but they’re not mean or unfair. We lied to them, and did something that could’ve been dangerous, so they acted accordingly. It’s not like we committed </span>
  <em>
    <span>cold blooded </span>
  </em>
  <span>murder.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My old man would’ve flipped his lid,” Janus replied. “Wait, was that a snake pun?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton couldn’t help but giggle, “Yesssss, it was.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh my god.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What? It’s just a joke, Janus, no need to throw a </span>
  <em>
    <span>hissy</span>
  </em>
  <span> fit.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Get out of my room.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton laughed a bit, “G’night, Janus. See you in the morning,” he said, finally leaving the room and heading upstairs to his own.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>“Oh my god, Logan caught you guys bringing JD’s stuff in?” Virgil questioned, looking at Patton and Janus. The three of them sat in one of the booths in the school cafeteria, along with Patton’s friend Emile. Virgil sat beside Janus, while Patton and Emile sat across from them. They had found that they all shared the same lunch, since Janus and Virgil had Study Hall for their C Block class, and Patton and Emile were both in History, which was in the same wing of the school, and thus had the same lunch period.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, I guess they heard us bringing stuff in and decided to see what all the noise was,” Janus replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, you guys’re grounded?” Emile asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Kinda?” Patton answered. “I’m not allowed to drive for the next week, and you and Virgil aren’t allowed over for that same time.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And obviously we can’t go over to either of your places for the week,” Janus chimed in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, that’s not too bad,” Emile stated. “Could’ve been worse.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, Mr. Prescott would’ve bitten your head off, Jan,” Virgil stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is Janus’ Dad really that bad?” Emile asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Considering the scratch and bruise I’ve had on my cheek for the last week came from him?” Janus replied, turning his head and motioning to the scratch and fading bruise on his right cheek. The bruise was somewhat covered by some foundation, but he hadn’t been able to blend it perfectly, so a bit still showed through.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay, yeah, he’s that bad,” Emile conceded. A few beats of silence went by before she -Patton had explained earlier in the week that Emile was Genderfluid, and wore a blue, orange, purple, or pink bracelet depending on what sort of day it was, and today she was wearing a pink bracelet- spoke again. “So, topic change. Anyone here planning on going to the Fall Formal? Tickets go on sale on Tuesday.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We were thinking of going this year,” Virgil stated. “I think I’ll be able to handle it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What d’you mean, Kylo Friend?” Patton asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Kylo Friend</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Virgil questioned in response.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Too much of a stretch?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Little bit,” Janus answered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll work on it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What I mean,” Virgil went on to say, “is I think I’ve got my anxiety under enough control that I can go to the Formal and not have a bad time.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You have anxiety?” Emile asked, a bit of concern in her voice.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, Social Anxiety Disorder, actually,” Virgil confessed. “I’m on meds for it, and I go to therapy. I think I’ve been doing pretty well lately.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You have, Virge,” Janus assured him. “You had to do that poetry presentation in English, and managed to do it from memory, that’s huge.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil gave a bit of a smirk and a shrug, “Thanks, JD.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Patton and I were planning on meeting up with Elliot and Valerie for the Formal, you two should join us!” Emile exclaimed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I dunno…” Virgil replied. “New people kinda, y’know…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Would it help if we met them ahead of time? Maybe we could arrange a time to get together in a familiar, low-stress environment?” Janus suggested.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Uh, I think so? It helped when you introduced me to Dominic.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then we can arrange that,” Patton told him. “We could head to your place, if you want. And you don’t even need to meet both of them at the same time if you don’t want to.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, guys,” Virgil smiled a bit. “We’ll also need to get our hands on clothes for the Formal. Jeans and T-shirts aren’t going to cut it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Cenn said one of their friends from college might be able to help,” Patton stated. “Dot’s helped them with their suits for work and that kind of stuff.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, looks like clothes and company are set,” Emile observed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And I’ll be able to drive again by then, and Valerie’s gonna drive Elliot, so transportation is also nailed down.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We just have to make sure we can all afford the tickets,” Virgil chimed in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I always set money aside for school stuff like this, so I’m already set,” Emile told the others.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Cenn offered to pay for my ticket,” Patton added.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I can check my balance, I should be able to withdraw enough for both our tickets,” Janus stated, looking at Virgil.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay, so we’re doing this,” Virgil admitted.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mission </span>
  <em>
    <span>Prepare for the Fall Formal</span>
  </em>
  <span>, totally possible,” Patton giggled, just as the bell rang to send students to their next class.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Fun fact about something mentioned in this chapter!</p><p>Virgil’s poetry presentation is based on an assignment I had in my English class my Freshman year of High School. We were required to choose a poem that we connected with, present it to the class, and hand in a short written piece to the teacher on why we connected with that poem.</p><p>At the time, I wasn’t being treated for my ADHD and Anxiety, which made presentations like this far more difficult. I found a poem I connected with, “I’m Nobody! Who are you?” by Emily Dickinson. The poem is 8 lines long, but our requirement had been to find a poem that was 10-14 lines, I believe. We could present from memory as extra credit, rather than reading off a printed version of the poem. My teacher allowed me to use my selected poem, so long as I recited it from memory (which I managed to do, and did get the proper extra credit for).</p><p>Virgil had a similar assignment, and found a poem that was just a bit too short. His teacher allowed him to use the poem if he presented from memory, and gave him a few extra points for doing so.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Pre-Formal Jitters and Changes</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The next few weeks went by in a bit of a blur for Janus and his friends. Logan’s friend Dot, a teacher at the middle school, fitted him, Patton, and Virgil for suits, and fitted Emile for a dress. The friends were informed that their clothes would be ready a few days before the Formal, and would be dropped off by her husband Larry. Janus, his cousin, and their friends got their tickets to the Formal the day after they went on sale, and Janus was actually looking forward to the dance.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, how’re you feeling about the Formal?” Virgil asked him. The boys were laying on the floor of the living room in Virgil’s apartment, now that Janus and Patton were no longer under orders they couldn’t visit their friends.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Kinda nervous, actually,” Janus confessed. “I’ve never worn a suit like this. What if she tailored it too close at the waist, and it makes me look too feminine?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Jay, you explained the situation to her, right?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And she understood what you were telling her, and agreed to make sure the measurements were correct, right?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then there’s nothing to worry about. And that’s coming from </span>
  <em>
    <span>me</span>
  </em>
  <span> of all people.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus sighed a bit, “I guess you’re right.”</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Logan was working in their home office, the room which had once been the guest bedroom, getting things set up properly. Roman and Remus had helped them move things from the original office downstairs, so that Janus’ room would be upstairs with Patton’s and their own, and their office would be in a better position if someone were to try to break in again. They had finally replaced their harddrive, and were working to get the computer wired up again when they heard a knock at the door.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes?” they questioned, hardly looking up from their work.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Logan?” Janus' voice returned, following the sound of the door opening.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is there something you need, Janus?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Would you happen to know anyone who can cut hair?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan turned to their nephew, leaning back against the desk a bit. “I’m guessing you want to get your hair cut for the Formal?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah… It’s kinda getting a little out of control,” Janus answered, pulling out the elastic that held his half-ponytail in place. His medium blonde hair fell in his face as a result, showing just how out of control it was getting.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I see. Well, there are a few options, depending on what you’d like to have done,” Logan told him. “Is it safe for me to assume you would rather see a proper barber?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ve never been to a barber, actually,” Janus admitted. “My father wouldn’t allow it. He always took me to the stylist my Mom went to, I just had them do as little as possible.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, I think it’s about time we get you a proper haircut. If you’d like, that is,” Logan suggested. They couldn’t fully hide their smile when Janus seemed to perk up at the idea. “I know just where to go. I already have an appointment, you could come with me,” they offered, just before their phone went off with a pleasant alarm tone, which they shut off. “That would be the alarm I set to remind myself to leave. Would you be willing to go now?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“More than willing,” Janus replied, smiling at them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan smiled calmly at Janus, getting up from their position leaning against the desk and pocketing their phone. “Let’s get going, then,” they stated. With that, the pair began to make their way out of the house.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is Patton coming?” Janus questioned, looking up at Logan as the two of them got to the door and Logan checked their pockets to ensure they had their wallet and keys.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Patton will be stopping by later, his appointment isn’t for another forty-five minutes, so he’ll meet us there,” they answered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan got into the car, and Janus followed suit, settling into the passenger seat beside them. After a short drive, Logan parked the car in front of a small barber shop at the corner. The pair entered, and the bell above the door softly chimed. Logan gave a bit of a wave to some of the other people in the shop, while Janus looked around a bit.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m guessing this is quite different from where you’re used to going,” Logan mused.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah. It’s a good kind of different, though,” Janus told them with a bit of a smile.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, if it isn’t Pocket Protector, themself!” called a voice from the last chair in the row they stood by.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Roman, Remus,” Logan replied. “In for a trim, Roman?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course,” the man in the seat replied. “Who’s the kid?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ah, Roman, Remus, this is my nephew, Janus,” Logan introduced. “Janus, these are two of my colleagues, Roman and Remus Prince.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Isn’t Janice a girl’s name?” Roman responded, looking at Janus with a raised eyebrow.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Janus</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” the boy corrected, stressing his pronunciation of the name. “J-A-N-U-S, as in the Roman god of beginnings, endings, time, duality, and transitions.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ah, right,” Roman nodded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ro, either keep your head still, or get outta my chair,” Remus prompted, grabbing the sides of their brother’s head and adjusting its position.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fine, fine,” the seated twin mumbled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You guys take a seat, once I finish with this one here, I’ll pull one of you,” Remus told the pair.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan gave a nod, and sat down with Janus. They began to scroll through their phone, checking messages and the like, while Janus looked around the shop. After a few moments, Remus had finished with Roman’s hair, and had his brother stand up while he swept the floor around the chair.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Lo, you’re up next,” Remus called out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why don’t you take a look through the photos, see if you find anything you like,” Logan suggested to Janus as they stood, pocketing their phone as they approached Remus’ station. “Same as always, Remus.”</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Janus watched as Logan took a seat at Remus’ station, and picked up the book on the table that had the name </span>
  <em>
    <span>Remus Alexander Prince</span>
  </em>
  <span> written on the front cover. He flipped through the pages of photos of what was likely Remus’ work. Remus had seemingly worked at a couple of different places before this, since there were examples of just about everything Janus could think of, from various dye-jobs to elaborate patterns cut into hair with trimmers.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Re’s got a knack for this kind of thing,” Roman’s voice cut through Janus’ thoughts, drawing his attention to his left.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Looks it,” Janus replied, going back to flipping through the book. “I’m still not even really sure about this…” he mumbled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“About getting it all off?” Roman questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah. I’ve had it long for a while, but with the Formal coming up, I think it’s time for a change.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I can tell you that no matter what, Remus’ll do whatever they can to get you looking your best, kid. He’s been doing this stuff part-time for a </span>
  <em>
    <span>while</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus smiled a bit at that and nodded, going back to flipping through the photos in the book. He came across one page in particular that caught his eye; the before photo showed a young man who almost looked a bit like Janus, with a more feminine face and long wavy brown hair, and the after depicted the same young man with a short cut, with the sides and back of his hair cut close to his head and the top being kept a bit longer and being dyed a sort of lavender purple. The edge of the boy’s longer hair wasn’t blended very much, leaving a fairly clean line between the short and long sections.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Janus?” Remus’ voice cut through his thoughts, and the boy looked up to find them standing just to his right. “Find something you like?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I kind of like this,” Janus told them, pointing to the photo he’d been looking at. “Could we try something like that? Without the color?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If that’s what you want, that’s what we’ll do,” Remus replied with a smile.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I want this,” Janus confirmed with a smile.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Get yourself in that chair, then,” Remus prompted with a chuckle.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus stood and went over to the chair, taking a seat as Remus grabbed a fresh cape and draped it over him, fastening it behind his neck. He watched as Remus got his supplies ready, clippers, a couple of hair clips, a clean comb, and a set of hair shears. As Janus watched Remus get everything that would be needed, the bell over the door chimed again, and the boy curiously looked over to spot his cousin entering the shop.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hi, Patton,” he greeted.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Janus!” Patton replied with a bright smile. “Ooo, you’re getting your hair cut, too?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Heh, yeah… With the Formal this Friday, I thought maybe it was time to get something a bit neater.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What kinda look are you going for?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ll see soon.”</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Remus adjusted the cape over Janus, before grabbing his comb and running it through the boy’s long blonde hair. “Logan usually runs with a number four guard on the back and sides, which is half an inch of length,” Remus told him. “Do you wanna run with that for now? I can always go back over with a shorter guard.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What length is a three?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A number three is three eighths of an inch.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Could we go with that?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re totally positive you wanna run with that?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“One hundred percent.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I like that confidence, kid,” Remus smiled. “I can turn ya around, and the final reveal can be a surprise.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, and do you wanna have a before and after?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why not,” Janus smiled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remus chuckled, taking a photo of Janus as he was before turning the chair so that Janus was facing away from the mirror. They sectioned off the top portion of the boy’s hair, using a hair clip to keep it out of the way. He combed through Janus hair, and picked up the clippers, snapping on the number three guard. “You ready?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ready,” Janus replied, shutting his eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remus smiled a bit, and turned on the clippers. He started to cut off Janus’ long hair, letting it fall to the floor at their feet. They cut the short section, and went about neatening up the edges, squaring things off as they always did. The clippers got set aside, and Remus grabbed the comb once again, removing the clip from Janus’ hair and combing it back.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What side do you usually part on?” he asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Left,” Janus simply replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got it,” Remus confirmed. In truth, it didn’t make much of a difference, but it still helped them get an idea of what they were working with. They combed Janus’ remaining long hair to the right, visualizing what they were going to do. He sprayed down the boy’s hair with water, combing through it before picking up the hair shears and setting to work, snipping away at Janus’ hair.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It took some time, but Remus eventually finished with Janus’ hair. A final blow dry and comb through settled the look in place, and a little product gave his hair a nice shine. Remus had to admit it was quite the difference. They swept up the hair from the floor and brushed off Janus’ neck and shoulders, before finally addressing the teen. “Hey kid, that was all on your head when you came in,” he stated, tapping Janus’ shoulder.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus opened his eyes and looked towards the pile of hair Remus had swept up. All of it was long and medium blonde, leaving no doubt that it was in fact his hair. “Oh my god,” he laughed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ready to see the final result?” Remus asked, planting his hands on the back of the chair.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ready,” the boy nodded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay,” they replied. With a bit of a flourish, Remus turned the chair around, so that Janus could see himself, and held up a hand mirror so that the boy could see the back of his hair.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Holy </span>
  <em>
    <span>shit</span>
  </em>
  <span>…” Janus muttered, looking at himself in the mirror. It was almost like the boy didn’t recognize himself without his long hair, and it made Remus wonder for a moment if he’d </span>
  <em>
    <span>ever </span>
  </em>
  <span>had his hair short like this.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m guessing you like it?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I </span>
  <em>
    <span>love</span>
  </em>
  <span> it,” Janus told him, smiling brightly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can we look now, Remus?” Logan’s voice interrupted.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remus chuckled, taking Janus’ after photo and removing the cape from his shoulders. “I think we’re ready for you guys to see.”</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Janus turned towards Logan, finding that both they and Patton had their eyes covered with their hands. Logan was sitting still, while Patton was tapping his feet against the floor, clearly excited to see Janus’ new haircut.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay, guys. What do you think?” Janus asked, getting up from the chair as Remus went about cleaning up and getting ready to give Patton his own haircut.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan and Patton uncovered their eyes, and Patton hopped up, bouncing on the balls of his feet, “Oh my goodness! Janus, you look so good!” he exclaimed, smiling wide.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think this suits you far better than the long hair,” Logan complimented with a subtle smile.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think so, too,” Janus agreed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The blonde teen took a seat while Patton stepped up for Remus to work on. Janus opened the front-facing camera on his phone and looked at himself, adjusting his bangs a bit before snapping a selfie, with the camera a bit above him, and his face tilted just a bit away, giving the camera a cool smirk. Satisfied with the photo, Janus saved it and went into his messaging app, pulling up the thread he had with his Mom.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>
    <em>Me: </em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span>[Photo Attachment]</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <b>
    <em>Me: </em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span>Finally did it.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>After he texted his Mom, Janus got a Snapchat notification from Virgil. The photo showed his friend laying on his bed, looking bored out of his mind, with the caption </span>
  <em>
    <span>Wyd, Bananaconda?</span>
  </em>
  <span> Janus couldn’t help but chuckle at the nickname.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Bananaconda</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Roman’s voice questioned from his left. The man had clearly caught a glimpse of the caption on Virgil’s photo.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I like the color yellow, and I like snakes, so he likes to give me snake-themed nicknames,” Janus explained. He settled back in his seat, snapping a quick photo with a subtle smile and giving it the caption </span>
  <em>
    <span>New hair, who dis?</span>
  </em>
  <span>, before sending it to Virgil.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <b>
    <em>SpiderBoi: </em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span>Don’t text me in the middle of the night saying “U up” because “new phone, who diiiis”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <b>
    <em>Me: </em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span>Quality use of a Beetlejuice Musical quote</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <b>
    <em>SpiderBoi: </em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span>I thought so. Looking good, dude. There’s a meeting tonight, u gonna be there?</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <b>
    <em>Me: </em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span>I don’t know… Considering last time, y’know, happened</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <b>
    <em>SpiderBoi: </em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span>We could meet up and talk it over if u want. Might be step one in getting him to say your name</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <b>
    <em>Me: </em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span>2 in a row, nice. I’ll think about it</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <b>
    <em>SpiderBoi: </em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span>Well, lemme know. Not like you gotta say my name 3 times for me to do my thing</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <b>
    <em>Me: </em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span>Since you’re so smart, a stand-up bro, I’ll think about your offer, let ya know</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <b>
    <em>SpiderBoi: </em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span>I knew there was a reason we became friends.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <b>
    <em>Me: </em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span>Yep. Ttyl, meet at your place?</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <b>
    <em>SpiderBoi: </em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span>No problem, see ya</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Logan? Virgil just asked if I wanted to come spend the night at his place,” Janus told Logan.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re free to go if you’d like,” Logan replied. “Just don’t do anything stupid and/or illegal,” they added.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“At the very least, if you </span>
  <em>
    <span>do</span>
  </em>
  <span> choose to do something stupid and/or illegal, don’t get caught,” Remus chimed in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Remus, no,” Logan stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Remus, </span>
  <em>
    <span>yes</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Remus returned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus couldn’t help but laugh, smiling when he saw Patton stand up from the chair in front of Remus, shaking his head to make his curls settle. They were a bit shorter and the edges of his hair had been cleaned up with clippers. With all four haircuts complete, Remus cleaned up their station, having wrapped up their shift, and all five of them left the barber shop. Roman and Remus left on Roman’s motorcycle, and Logan drove Janus and Patton home.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus packed a bag with a change of clothes, his spare binder, one of his T patches, and a handful of other things he would need at Virgil’s place. He also threw his makeup kit and snake jacket in the bag, before zipping it up. He had a bit of time before he had to leave, so he simply lay on his bed, hoping to get over his pre-Formal jitters before Friday came around.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Fun Fact: This was the point where I realized that this story was going to include a LOT of references to various musicals. It just kinda happened-</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Formal, Feelings, and Fears</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This might be my favorite chapter so far-</p><p>I don't think there's anything to really warn you all about ahead of time, but if there is, please let me know so that I can add in the proper warnings!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The week leading up to the Fall Formal was known at Silver Valley High School as Runway Week. It was similar to Homecoming, with a spirit week to get everybody excited for the coming dance. There was no competition between classes, aside from each Homeroom keeping track of the number of students participating in themed days; the class with the most students participating would get some sort of prize, usually in the form of a doughnut breakfast or the like.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Monday was Onesie Day, where students were encouraged to wear a onesie to school. Patton had taken Janus out on Sunday to pick up onesies, and the pair arrived at the school dressed in them. Patton wore a green frog onesie, and Janus wore one styled after a yellow snake and had a tongue on the hood, so if he wore it, the tongue would fall in front of his face. The pair met up with Emile and Virgil, who were in Stitch and Jack Skellington onesies respectively. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Tuesday was Character Day, where students were urged to dress up as their favorite TV, movie, cartoon, comic, or video game character. Patton decided to dress up like Olaf from </span>
  <em>
    <span>Frozen</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Janus was dressed as Atlas from </span>
  <em>
    <span>Bioshock</span>
  </em>
  <span> -specifically from the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Burial at Sea: Episode 2</span>
  </em>
  <span> DLC-, Virgil was in a stage-accurate Beetlejuice costume, and Emile was dressed up as Vanellope from </span>
  <em>
    <span>Wreck-It Ralph</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Wednesday was Twin Day, in which students were encouraged to match with one or more of their friends. Patton, Janus, Virgil, and Emile all decided to match that day, and all four of them wore a baby blue polo shirt, tan pants, and a grey cardigan wrapped around their shoulders. Patton enjoyed the look so much he decided it would likely be one of his go-to pairings in the future. The outfits Dot had been working on for the group were also dropped off by her husband at Logan’s place, though the four friends decided not to look at their outfits until Friday.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Thursday was Rainbow Day, and students were encouraged to wear as many colors of the rainbow as they could. Patton wore a rainbow-striped T-shirt and had a Pansexual flag draped over his shoulders like a cape, to add extra color and run with the unintended “Pride Day” the school had set up when deciding on the day’s theme. Emile and Virgil pulled a similar move, wearing colorful shirts -or in Emile’s case, a black dress with little rainbows printed all over it- and wearing the Bisexual and Genderfluid flags as capes. Janus wore a shirt with abstract patterns in each of the colors of the rainbow and a set of painted jeans he owned but hardly wore, and decided to wear a bracelet he’d gotten a while back that was made up of blue, pink, and white beads, and one with little Demisexual flags that wrapped around his wrist, wanting to play along with his friends’ unofficial “Pride Day”, but not feeling quite confident enough to fully show off his identity. He didn’t even </span>
  <em>
    <span>own</span>
  </em>
  <span> a pride flag, anyways.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Finally, Friday was another costume day, Villain Day. Patton dressed up as Toffee from </span>
  <em>
    <span>Star vs the Forces of Evil</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Emile dressed as Hans from </span>
  <em>
    <span>Frozen</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Virgil went as JD from </span>
  <em>
    <span>Heathers</span>
  </em>
  <span>, and Janus decided to be The Joker. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The group got word on Friday that Elliot and Valerie wouldn’t be going to the formal, after all. Elliot had finally had enough of their toxic boyfriend, and broke up with him, and Valerie was going to spend the night watching movies with them. The pair had given their tickets to a pair of students in one of their classes who hadn’t been able to get tickets while they were on sale because of a problem in the school’s system that listed them as ineligible, despite the fact that their grades were good and their class dues had been paid. As a result, it would just be the four of them going.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan came by and picked up the four friends from school at the end of the day, chuckling a bit when they spotted the crew in their costumes. They had already known Janus’ and Patton’s characters of choice, and managed to guess Emile’s fairly quickly, but missed the mark when it came to Virgil’s character. Once Logan got the teens home, they had all changed into something more comfortable to hang out in while they waited to get ready for the dance, chatting, playing video games, and ignoring the butterflies in their stomachs all the while.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Janus stood in front of the garment bag holding his suit for the Formal. He took a deep breath, turning away from the zipped-up bag. He pulled on his black socks and his nude binder, adjusting the tight material so that it sat properly against his skin. Finally, he turned to the garment bag again, and unzipped it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Inside the garment bag, Janus found a yellow dress shirt, black slacks, a black capelet lined with yellow material and a snake-shaped clasp, and a black jacket which had a snake embroidered in metallic gold thread climbing the left side of the jacket and wrapping around the left sleeve. Janus pulled on a light-weight undershirt and got dressed in the slacks and dress shirt, before pulling the box that had been on his bed over to himself. Upon opening the lid, Janus found a black bowtie -and instructions on how to tie it-, a bowler hat, and a set of yellow gloves. The boy smiled, draping the tie around his neck and moving to pull on his shiny black dress shoes, tying them neatly before proceeding. He followed the instructions to tie his bowtie and straightened it out, before pulling on the jacket, buttoning it and running his fingers over the metallic stitching. After combing his hair into place, Janus put on the bowler hat and pulled the gloves onto his hands, and finally looked at himself in the mirror.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Damn, Dot…” he mused to himself. “Not bad. Not bad at all.”</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>While Janus was in his room getting ready, Patton was doing the same. He excitedly opened the garment bag and found a suit consisting of a baby blue dress shirt, white tie, pale yellow vest, and grey jacket and slacks. He smiled brightly when he saw that the jacket had a pattern of flowers embroidered into the left side in baby blue thread.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He pulled on the suit and put on his brown dress shoes. He fought a bit with his tie, though did manage to tie it properly. After smoothing out his jacket, Patton looked himself over in the mirror. The boy neatened up his hair, finger-combing the curls into place, and smiled.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Virgil took a few slow, deep breaths to calm himself down. He stood in the Holmes’ bathroom, while his friends were in their bedrooms and Emile was in Logan’s room to get ready. After a moment of anticipation, the boy undid the zipper on the garment bag that hung on the hook on the back of the door.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Inside the garment bag, Virgil found a set of black slacks, a deep purple dress shirt, a black tie with purple patches and white stitches, and a black jacket with a spiderweb pattern embroidered into the right half of it in shiny purple thread. The boy couldn’t help but smile as he ran his fingers over the stitching. Dot had known him for maybe a couple of hours, but she certainly understood his style.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>With a deep breath, Virgil pulled on the clothes and a set of black dress shoes he’d gotten. He struggled with the tie for a bit, before pulling his phone out and looking up a video to help him. Soon enough, he had a simple knot that would do just fine. He pulled on the jacket and buttoned it, before combing out his hair, letting his bangs fall over his right eye as he usually did. He’d decided to dye the top portion of his hair a deep purple just a few days ago, and he thought it looked pretty good on its own. With the purple and black of his suit, it looked even better, in his opinion. One final check in the mirror to touch up his eyeliner and eyeshadow, and he was as ready as he was going to get.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Emile stood in Logan’s bedroom, pulling on a set of tights to wear under their dress.  The orange bracelet they had worn to school -indicating it was a They/Them pronoun day- was sitting on Logan’s dresser, and they would put it back on once they were dressed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>With their tights on, Emile hummed softly to themselves as they unzipped the garment bag that hung on the hook on Logan’s closet door. Inside, there was a light pink, floor-length dress. The dress had an asymmetrical neckline and no left shoulder strap or sleeve. The sleeve it did have was made of sheer light pink material which extended over the chest and wrapped around the waist, before going down the length of the skirt as an overlay. Over the sheer pink material, there were hearts and curling linework embroidered in white. Emile couldn’t help but squeal a bit when they saw the dress.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The teen pulled on the dress, using a string they had in their bag as an extender for the zipper pull so they could actually reach it. From there, they pulled on the white heels they’d been saving for just the right outfit, and did their makeup. It wasn’t much, just a bit of blush and pink eyeshadow, but it pulled the look together. They put their orange bracelet back on, and stood in front of the full length mirror that hung on Logan’s wall, smoothing out the material of their dress. With a nod, they straightened themselves up, and went to meet with the others.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Logan was sitting in the living room, reading a book and sitting in one of the armchairs. They heard the click of high-heeled shoes against the floor, and looked up to see Emile emerge around the corner in their light pink dress.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You look wonderful, Emile,” they complimented.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you, Mx. Holmes,” Emile replied, smiling brightly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Next, Patton came out, adjusting the collar of his jacket. Logan looked their son over, before approaching him, making a slight adjustment to his tie. “There you go, straight as an arrow. You look perfect, son.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, Cenn,” Patton beamed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The third teen to emerge was Virgil, adjusting the sleeves of his shirt and jacket. He stopped in front of the others, motioning to himself a bit.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well? What d’ya think?” he questioned. “I clean up pretty well, huh?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh my goodness, Virgil! You look amazing!” Patton exclaimed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You clean up quite well, Virgil,” Logan agreed. “One suggestion, though,” they offered, stepping forward, undoing the button on Virgil’s jacket. “On a two-button suit, you </span>
  <em>
    <span>always</span>
  </em>
  <span> button the top button, and </span>
  <em>
    <span>never</span>
  </em>
  <span> button the bottom one. Not the other way around like you had it,” they informed the boy, as they buttoned the top button of Virgil’s jacket.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Really, Virgil? Doing up the bottom button? I thought I taught you better than that,” Janus’ voice cut in. The final member of the group had done a bit of makeup on himself, using a somewhat glittery gold eyeshadow on his left eye, and a more subdued yellow on the right to tie his look together. His capelet was draped over his right arm, and he did a bit of a spin for the others, letting the light catch and glitter off the metallic gold thread that made up the snake on his left side. He took off his bowler hat and gave a little bow, before righting himself and putting the hat back on.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think I might </span>
  <em>
    <span>actually </span>
  </em>
  <span>be gay,” Virgil mumbled, staring at his friend.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My god, you are a Bi </span>
  <em>
    <span>Disaster</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Virgil,” Janus chuckled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh my goodness!” Patton exclaimed, before simply starting to squeal. Soon, he started to cough.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you alright, Patton?” Logan questioned, patting their son’s shoulder.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I got over-excited…” Patton told them, clearing his throat.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You look fantastic, Janus!” Emile explained, clapping their hands a bit and bouncing on the balls of their feet a little.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I must say, you clean up incredibly well,” Logan complimented.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, everyone,” Janus replied, blushing a bit under all the praise. He really wasn’t used to people gushing over him like this.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Let’s get some photos, everyone,” Logan suggested, pulling their phone out of their pocket.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The next twenty minutes or so were spent getting various photos of the four friends. Several shots of each of the well dressed teens on their own, and a number of group shots of all four of them, as well as several of Emile and Patton together, Patton and Janus posed together for a couple of shots, and finally Virgil and Janus posed for several photos together. Logan eventually set down their expectations for the group; they wanted the four back by midnight, and wanted the four of them to text them when they arrived at the dance, as well as when they were starting to leave. If anything happened, they could text or call at any point, and Logan would send Remy to get them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You four stay safe, use your common sense,” Logan told them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We will, Cenn, don’t worry,” Patton assured them, and the other three teens nodded in agreement.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Alright. I love you, Patton.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Love you too, Cenn.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>With that final exchange, the four teens left, Patton driving Logan’s dark blue car down to the venue for the dance.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Virgil paused when he and his friends got into the venue. He could feel his chest tightening up a bit, and he shoved his hands into his pockets in an attempt to keep them from shaking. He could do this; he’d been taking his medication like he was supposed to, following his therapist’s suggestions, and hadn’t had a full-on panic attack in almost two months -a new record for him, the last longest stint having been six weeks-.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Virge, you doing okay?” Janus asked. The blonde boy stood to Virgil’s left, looking a bit concerned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Uh, yeah,” Virgil replied. “Yeah, I’m okay. It’s just… That’s just a </span>
  <em>
    <span>lot</span>
  </em>
  <span> of people…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I grabbed your earbuds, if you end up needing them,” Janus told him, pulling the charging case out of his pocket.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks,” Virgil smiled. “What’d I do to end up with a friend like you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You picked up a spider out of my drawer when we were in first grade because it freaked me out. And you didn’t think I was weird when I told you I wasn’t a girl six months later and just started calling me </span>
  <em>
    <span>JD</span>
  </em>
  <span> because it was less uncomfortable for me,” Janus answered. The pair couldn’t help but chuckle a bit at the memories.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <em>
    <span>Janus had been sitting next to him for all of two weeks when he’d come in and opened the drawer at his seat to find a spider just sitting on top of his folders. The other boy had frozen where he was, but Virgil had found the little creature fascinating, and simply put his hand into the drawer, letting the spider crawl up onto his hand. He’d carried it over to the window and set it free, and the pair had become fast friends after that.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Six months later, the two of them had been out on what students at their elementary school called The Bubble, a dome-shaped piece of playground equipment that most didn’t use after the recess monitors had deemed it unsafe following several kids falling off and hurting themselves. Janus and Virgil didn’t care, though, and had ended up claiming it as their spot at recess for the entire time they were at that school. The pair had been talking about some topic that had faded from their memories by this point, but a lul in the conversation had come, and Janus had decided to fill it.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I’m not a girl,” Janus had stated.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“What do you mean?” Virgil replied, looking over at his friend. At the time, Janus wore his hair long enough for it to reach his elbows, and it was always tied up in ponytails, buns, or braids, and his clothes were mostly skirts and dresses in pink, purple, white, and grey, with the occasional pastel yellow. For all Virgil knew back then, that made someone a girl.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I look like a girl, but I don’t feel like a girl,” Janus explained. “I wear pink and have long hair and say I like ponies and stuff, but none of it feels right. I just do it because that’s what Papa wants.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“What do you want?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I wanna be like you. I don’t wanna be Juliette. I wanna be a boy.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Okay. Do you want me to not call you Julie anymore?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“What would you call me, then?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Maybe JP?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“That sounds stupid,” Janus had made a bit of a face at the potential nickname.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“What’s your middle name?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Diana.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“How about JD?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Janus had smiled, then. “I like that.”</span>
  </em>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>“Feeling better?” Janus questioned, looking at his friend. After a short time remembering some of their earliest -and most important- encounters, the other boy certainly seemed to be doing better.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah. Thanks, you old Reptilian Rapscallion,” Virgil replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nice alliteration,” Janus praised.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I try,” Virgil shrugged. “We should probably catch up with Patton and Emile.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, probably.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The pair made their way into the main area where the Formal was being held, and managed to find Patton and Emile at one of the tables that had been set up surrounding the larger area that had been made into a dance floor. The table Patton and Emile had chosen was a bit away from the others, in a quieter corner of the space, which served to be a good choice.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you doing alright, Virgil?” Patton asked, seeing the two friends approach.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, I’m okay,” he confirmed. “This is actually pretty cool.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The group sat and chatted for a bit, and eventually Patton and Emile offered to get everyone something to drink, leaving Janus and Virgil at the table. Janus had decided to take off his capelet and draped it on the back of his chair, but kept his hat on. Virgil smirked a bit and took the hat, placing it on his own head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How do I look?” he jokingly asked, mimicking Janus’ usual smirk from when he took selfies.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Like some weird Cryptid Theater Emo who’s trying </span>
  <em>
    <span>really</span>
  </em>
  <span> hard to get cast as the villain,” Janus replied, snatching the hat back as he laughed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, kinda like an emo version of you,” Virgil responded, breaking into a fit of laughter as Janus could only sputter in reply.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“May I remind you, </span>
  <em>
    <span>I’m</span>
  </em>
  <span> not the one who suggested, </span>
  <em>
    <span>An abridged version of Heathers, but make it gay</span>
  </em>
  <span>, for our Interclass play,” Janus reminded him as his cousin and Emile returned with drinks.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Everyone agrees that we have </span>
  <em>
    <span>at least</span>
  </em>
  <span> two people who would look </span>
  <em>
    <span>really damn good</span>
  </em>
  <span> as JD,” Virgil mused.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You are </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> going to get me out on that stage, Raccoon Man.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh come </span>
  <em>
    <span>on</span>
  </em>
  <span>, you know every word of JD’s part, already! You could play that role with your eyes shut.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You guys settled on </span>
  <em>
    <span>Heathers, but make it gay</span>
  </em>
  <span>, didn’t you?” Emile questioned, taking their seat beside Patton.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yep. I’m trying to get this one here to audition to play JD,” Virgil stated, motioning to Janus.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll do the audition,” Janus gave in. Just as Virgil started to celebrate his victory, though, Janus continued to speak. “But, </span>
  <em>
    <span>only</span>
  </em>
  <span> if </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span> try out for Veronica’s role.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That was never the issue on the table!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, it is now.”</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Patton couldn’t help but be drawn towards the dance floor when one of his favorite songs came on. He pulled Emile over with him, knowing they wouldn’t mind being close to the speakers for the song. After the song he’d brought his friend up for had ended, Patton let Emile pull him a bit away from the speakers, where there were a few less people.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We should try to get them to dance together,” Emile suggested, gesturing towards Janus and Virgil, who were sitting at the table they had claimed. The pair had joined them a couple of times for a few songs, with Virgil being a bit awkward, while Janus had seemed to know what he was doing when it came to dancing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’re </span>
  <em>
    <span>clearly</span>
  </em>
  <span> both avoiding the fact that they’re more than just friends,” Patton agreed. “Oh! I know a song that might get them to join in. It’s not </span>
  <em>
    <span>really</span>
  </em>
  <span> a slow song, but Cenn taught me to dance to it at one point.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>One More Time with Feeling</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Emile guessed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course! Can you go up and request it, and I’ll try to get them on the floor?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re making the next request we come up with, though,” Emile told their friend, picking up the skirt of their dress a bit so they could more easily make their way through the crowd.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Deal,” Patton smiled, watching his friend disappear into the crowd. He turned and made his way back over towards the table. “Hey guys, Emile’s up requesting a song. You should join us for this one.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I dunno, Pat,” Virgil replied. “Everyone out there’s kinda, on top of each other, y’know?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This’ll be a slower one, I promise,” Patton told him. “You’ve gotta join us for at least </span>
  <em>
    <span>one</span>
  </em>
  <span> slower song. Please?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You may have forgotten how to properly button a two-button suit, but I know for a </span>
  <em>
    <span>fact</span>
  </em>
  <span> that you can dance with a partner, Spider Boi,” Janus told Virgil.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The purple haired teen groaned a bit, “Fine,” he stated, giving in. “But only for this song.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Emile approached the table, taking a seat by their friends. “Request made. Someone requested </span>
  <em>
    <span>Razzle Dazzle</span>
  </em>
  <span> from </span>
  <em>
    <span>Chicago</span>
  </em>
  <span> right ahead of me, so this song’ll wrap up, that one will play through, then it’ll be our request.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This one here </span>
  <em>
    <span>loves</span>
  </em>
  <span> that song,” Virgil teased, elbowing Janus.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shut up,” Janus chuckled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, I know he does,” Patton giggled. “He sings it while he’s in the shower.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Patton!” Janus whined, tipping his hat down over his face.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What? You’ve got a great voice!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He’s right and he should say it,” Virgil chimed in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, I’ve </span>
  <em>
    <span>gotta</span>
  </em>
  <span> hear this from you,” Emile determined, leaning against the back of their chair.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If I sing along, will you guys get off my ass about it?” Janus suggested.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Maybe,” Virgil smirked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus couldn’t help but roll his eyes. He actually hadn’t sung openly </span>
  <em>
    <span>for</span>
  </em>
  <span> someone since he was fifteen, and even then, it had just been himself and Virgil. He hadn’t even been started on testosterone at the time, and still had a very feminine-sounding voice when both speaking and singing. Janus had only started with his T patches a few months after he turned sixteen, when his Mom had been around to take him to the doctor and help get everything sorted out. Now that he’d been on the treatments for a bit over a year, the changes were a bit more clear. His voice had deepened a bit, and when he was by himself, Janus could tell the difference.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fine,” Janus replied. As the song began to play, he began to sing along. At first, he remained in his seat, though as the song continued, the boy got more into the role and stood, making his way around the table as he sang. He stood by his cousin and Emile, gloved hands on their shoulders, before making his way to a spot across the table from them, and then moving to stand by Virgil for the final couple of lines. At the end, he took off his hat and gave a little bow as his friends clapped.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This is our song!” Patton excitedly piped up as the next song, </span>
  <em>
    <span>One More Time with Feeling</span>
  </em>
  <span>, began to play. He stood and grabbed Emile’s hand, pulling them towards the dance floor as people either paired off with one another or moved off to the side to sit the song out.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>“May I have this dance, Virgil?” Janus asked, offering a gloved hand to his friend.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re such a dork,” Virgil chuckled, taking his friend’s hand and letting the blonde boy lead him out onto the dance floor.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Just follow my lead,” Janus told him, pulling his friend close.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The pair began to dance, Janus leading Virgil through simple steps he was aware the other boy knew. He couldn’t help but sing along with the song.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Hold on; one more time with feeling. Try it again, breathing’s just a rhythm. Say it in your mind until, you know that the words are right</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Janus sang, leading Virgil through the dance. He spun his friend a bit, pulling him close as the song came to an end. The next song that started was </span>
  <em>
    <span>Seventeen</span>
  </em>
  <span> from </span>
  <em>
    <span>Heathers</span>
  </em>
  <span>, and so the pair chose to stay out on the floor.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The two boys couldn’t help but sing along with the lyrics, with Janus singing JD’s part, and Virgil taking Veronica’s. They danced and felt as if they were the only people in the room for that moment. Janus held Virgil close, leading him through the steps, even spinning the other boy around. As the song began to wind down a bit, the two held one another closer. Janus glanced towards his cousin and Emile, before whispering to Virgil.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do you trust me?” Janus asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course,” Virgil replied, cocking an eyebrow in question.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus smirked a bit, taking off his hat and using it to shield them from Patton and Emile, as he pulled Virgil down a bit by his tie and kissed him.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Virgil froze for a second, shocked at the sudden action his friend had just taken. Truth be told, Virgil had </span>
  <em>
    <span>wanted</span>
  </em>
  <span> to kiss Janus for years. He’d wanted to ask the other boy out, to be his boyfriend, since they were Freshmen. All too soon, before he could respond, Janus had pulled away, putting his bowler hat back on his head and looking up at Virgil in a way that could only be described as concerned. With little thought, Virgil grabbed Janus by the lapels of his jacket and pulled him close, kissing the shorter boy.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A moment later, the two were staring at one another, shocked. Nobody around them really seemed to have noticed, aside from Patton and Emile who were clearly trying to contain themselves. The four moved back over to their table and sat down, Janus and Virgil were both blushing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, that happened…” Virgil mumbled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah…” Janus replied, clearing his throat a little bit. “Probably should’ve, asked before I just, </span>
  <em>
    <span>did that</span>
  </em>
  <span>, huh?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Probably,” Virgil agreed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Did I uh… Did I cross a line?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Did I?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, actually.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil smiled a bit, “Neither did you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then you wouldn’t mind if I did it again?” Janus questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not at all,” Virgil replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus smirked a bit, pulling Virgil in for a more proper kiss. It felt like time had stopped for a moment, until they parted to find Emile smiling at them, and Patton squealing, before starting to cough.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t hurt yourself, Pat,” Janus joked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You two are so cute!” Patton replied, drumming his hands against the table.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He’s not wrong,” Emile agreed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, how long have you, y’know…?” Janus asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Freshman year,” Virgil confessed. “Remember that time you borrowed a set of dark jeans and a polo shirt from me for a presentation you had to give? The set that was kinda small on me, so I just let you keep them? And a few weeks later, I realized I was Bi? Since then.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, I was your Bi Awakening </span>
  <em>
    <span>and</span>
  </em>
  <span> your crush all at once?” Janus chuckled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yep,” Virgil confirmed. “And you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Seventh grade,” Janus told him. “That lunch cruise thing they arranged for the seventh grade class because we beat the sixth and eighth graders in the holiday competitions, so they had a lunch cruise set up for us once the weather got warmer. We had to dress at least kinda nice, so you wore a set of slacks and a light purple polo, with a black vest on top, and I had to teach you that you had to button the top button and not the bottom one, because it had two buttons, and you tried to have both of them done up and I wasn’t going to have you making a fool of yourself.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Meanwhile, we were all seventh graders and nobody would’ve cared,” Virgil replied, laughing a bit.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I cared,” Janus responded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why that time, though?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You looked </span>
  <em>
    <span>really</span>
  </em>
  <span> good in light purple, while I was forced to change in the school bathroom into a set of clothes my Mom had given me on the drive over because my old man wanted me to wear a flowy yellow dress with pink trim and a pink belt at the waist.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, I remember that dress. Didn’t you have to change back once we got back to the school so your Dad thought you’d been in it all day?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yep.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, I guess we both had the same idea earlier,” Virgil chuckled. “I was gonna kiss you at the end of that song.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Guess I just got to it first,” Janus replied, laughing a bit. “Good to know you were thinking the same thing.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So… What does this make us?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m not really sure… I think for now, we should just be in the moment. We can figure it out when we get back to Logan’s.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think I can do that,” Virgil smiled. “For now, I’m not worrying about anything but right now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Gonna have to make sure to write that down for your therapist. Hearing </span>
  <em>
    <span>that</span>
  </em>
  <span> come out of </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span> is pretty big,” Janus praised.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, it is, isn’t it?”</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>The four friends spent the rest of the Formal chatting, occasionally going up to dance, and simply having a good time together. As people started to leave, the four teens decided they would follow suit, heading outside and getting into Logan’s car with Patton in the driver’s seat. While Patton got ready to drive them back, Emile sent Logan a text that they were on their way back.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The drive back to Logan’s place was uneventful, until they pulled up to the house, finding some of the lights turned on, and the front door kicked in. It was clear to Patton and Emile, as well as Virgil and Janus, that </span>
  <em>
    <span>something</span>
  </em>
  <span> had happened. It was then Emile found that they hadn’t gotten a reply from Logan, despite the fact Logan </span>
  <em>
    <span>always</span>
  </em>
  <span> texted back.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It seemed the good time the teens had been having had come to a sudden end, as they now needed to figure out what to do.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. What Now?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I don't think there's anything too serious in this chapter, but be aware that there are mentions of blood and descriptions of the aftermath of a break-in and struggle. If there's anything else to give a heads-up on, please let me know.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“Pat, what do we do?” Emile questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton was gripping the steering wheel of Logan’s car tight enough to turn his knuckles white. It wasn’t like he could just say that he didn’t know what to do, even if that was the truth. He didn’t want to scare his friends even more than they already were. The boy took a breath, pulling the car over and putting it in park, looking up at the house.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You guys stay here,” he stated. “I’m gonna go check it out.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What?!” Emile questioned. “You can’t be serious, what if there’s still someone in there? What if you find Logan and they’re, y’know…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You shouldn’t go alone,” Janus told his cousin.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, you guys need to stay here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re not going alone,” Janus told him. “I’ll go with you. Emile, Virgil, you two stay here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Janus, no. I’ll be fine,” Patton argued. “You stay here, keep an eye on things, keep Virgil calm, I won’t be too long.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But what if-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Stay here,” Patton sternly ordered, before getting out of the car. His tone left no room to argue the matter further, so the others said nothing, simply letting him get out of the car and approach the door.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Patton took a deep breath as he crossed the dark street, adjusting the jacket of his suit as he walked. He stood tall, trying to keep himself in a confident mindset as he went. He slowed down as he approached the door, and peeked inside, finding no signs of life, though he did find signs of a struggle, especially as he entered the house.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Inside, the teen found papers scattered on the floor, pictures crooked or completely knocked off their hooks, and things knocked over. The dining area was as much of a mess as the entryway, with chairs tossed aside and broken, and the table turned on its side, and some dishes from the hutch had been taken out and seemingly thrown, leaving broken glass scattered all over the floor. Patton couldn’t help but notice drops of blood on the floor, and a few smears on the doorways and walls as he made his way into the living room, where he found the couch pushed aside, the coffee table overturned, and one of the armchairs resting on its back.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton went on to check Logan’s office, the final room of interest on the first floor, and found the space a disaster. The desk was overturned, the chair was on its side by the far wall, the drawers had been pulled from the desk and emptied, piled up off to the side, and Logan’s computer tower and external harddrive were both missing. After checking the back door and finding that, just like the front, it had been kicked open, the teen couldn’t ignore his heart starting to race. He made his way upstairs to check the bedrooms.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton checked his room first, as it was closest to the staircase. Nothing seemed too out of place up here, aside from his desk and dresser drawers being pulled out and things tossed around. On an initial pass, it didn’t seem like anything was missing. Next, he checked Janus’ room, finding it in a similar state, with a few minor differences. Janus’ desk and dresser drawers were also pulled out and had been rifled through, as had his backpack. On his desk, amid the scattered papers, lay his yellow notebook, with a note folded in half and taped to the cover. Patton made a mental note to come back and grab the book if he could.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Finally, Patton came to Logan’s room. The door had been kicked in, just as the front door had been, and Logan’s dresser had been moved in front of the door, seemingly in an attempt to barricade the room. Patton cautiously stepped in, finding more blood than he’d spotted in the rest of the house. There were splatters on the walls and on Logan’s bedding, as well as on the dresser. The teen could only imagine what had happened. He found Logan’s phone on the floor by the foot of the bed, a smear of blood on the screen. He carefully picked up the phone and used the corner of Logan’s bedding to clean it off -seeing as the bedding already had blood on it, it really make much of a difference if more was added- unlocking the phone proved easy, seeing as Logan made sure he knew the passcode, and he found the Notes app open, with the only note having the title </span>
  <em>
    <span>FOR PATTON</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Quickly, Patton pocketed Logan’s phone and left the room, unable to find anything else. He went back into Janus’ room and grabbed the notebook off the desk, and made his way to the closet by the back door. Inside the closet, he found three backpacks, all packed and ready to grab. Patton slung two of the bags over his shoulders, one over each, and grabbed the third one by the top handle, before making his way back out to the car where his friends were waiting.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton didn’t say a word to his friends as he returned, opening the driver’s side door and hitting the button to pop the trunk. He put the three backpacks in his possession into the trunk and closed it quickly, before returning, handing Janus’ notebook to him silently as he settled into the driver’s seat.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nobody’s there,” he finally said. “The place is a mess, some kind of fight had to have happened.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do we do?” Emile questioned, looking to their friend for answers.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Right now, I think we get away from the house. We don’t know if someone’ll come back here. We’ll go from there.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But where do we go?” Emile asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton turned on the light over their heads. “Check the glove box. Cenn said they always kept stuff to help in an emergency there. Maybe there’s a map or something of safe places to go,” he suggested.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Emile nodded and opened the glove box in front of them, pulling out a couple of things before finding something that looked useful. They handed Patton a small book, which looked to be a small road atlas. He opened it up, going to a page Logan had marked with a blue sticky note. Their home was circled in blue pen on the page, which had a map of the city. A green sticky note on the page had a key that Patton didn’t quite understand, but did his best to follow. A location a few miles away was circled in red, and according to the key, whatever that place was, was </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Emergency Rendezvous 1”</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Despite not really knowing what that meant, it seemed better than staying out in front of a house that had been broken into. After studying the route for a few minutes, Patton handed Emile the road atlas once again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay, I know someplace to go,” Patton told the others, clicking his seatbelt into place and putting the car into drive. Without another word, he started to drive towards the location that had been marked on the map.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>After about twenty-five minutes of driving, Patton pulled up to what looked like a small house. The lights were all off inside, and from what Patton could see, there was nobody there. He ordered his friends to stay in the car, and this time, none of them argued. The teen parked the car in the driveway and got out, going up to the door of the house and pressing the button on the doorbell. After ringing the doorbell a couple of times, and going on to knock a few times, both with no answer, Patton abandoned the door and went to check in the windows. He couldn’t see anyone inside, and found the windows and back door locked. The boy returned to the front door, and spotted something he hadn’t noticed before; a little gnome by the front step, with a red hat, holding a welcome sign. He knelt down by the gnome, and went to pick it up to see if anything like a spare key was under it, only to find the hat of the gnome came off.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Inside the gnome, Patton found a pill bottle containing a key, and a paper in a sealed plastic bag. He skimmed over the words on the paper, and discovered that they were at a safe-house, one which was under the watch of Logan’s employer, the </span>
  <em>
    <span>Sanders Bureau of International Security</span>
  </em>
  <span>, and intended for use by their agents and their families. Considering Patton was Logan’s son, he presumed that it would be fine if he and his friends stayed here, at least for the night. He returned to the car and relayed this information to the others.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can someone help me grab the backpacks out of the trunk?” Patton asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll help,” Emile offered, approaching to help Patton with the backpacks. They huffed a bit, surprised by how heavy the bag they had grabbed had turned out to be. Together, the four teens made their way up to the door, with Patton making sure the car was locked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The four entered the house, and Patton turned on the lights. The space they entered was fairly small, and reminded them of a hotel room, but it would serve its purpose and keep them sheltered for the night. There were two small bedrooms, a bathroom, a small living room, and a kitchenette and dining table. The four teens decided they would figure out how to make it work.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do we do, now?” Virgil questioned. It was the first time since the group had found the door to Logan’s house kicked in that the boy had spoken. He was shaking a bit, and had Janus’ capelet fastened over his shoulders.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“For now, I think we should try to get some rest,” Patton stated. “Staying up all night and worrying won’t help anything, especially if we need to get someplace else. The last thing we need is to be exhausted.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The others nodded in agreement, and went to change out of their outfits from the dance. Janus and Virgil took one of the backpacks, a black one with yellow guards over the zippers, and got changed in one of the bedrooms, while Emile took the black and green backpack into the other bedroom to change, and Patton took the black and blue bag into the bathroom. Thankfully, in each of the bags, Logan had packed items that would fit themself, Patton, and Janus, so the four teens were able to find at least </span>
  <em>
    <span>something</span>
  </em>
  <span> that fit them well enough.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton checked with his friends, letting them pick how they would spend the night. Janus and Virgil decided they would stick together, claiming the bedroom that had a larger bed. Emile claimed the other bedroom, after Patton insisted that he would be fine sleeping on the sofa. The four split up, intending to do their best to get some sleep.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Patton found he couldn’t sleep, he couldn’t even </span>
  <em>
    <span>think</span>
  </em>
  <span> about sleep. With a sigh, he sat up on the sofa and pulled Logan’s phone out of the pocket of his slacks, which sat on the coffee table with the rest of his suit. He unlocked the phone and opened the note addressed to him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Patton,</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>If you are reading this, then it is likely that something has happened at the house. I implore you, please remain as calm as you can. I cannot promise that I am fine, but right now, that does not matter. What matters is that you are reading this now, and that means that you are likely okay.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>This note contains instructions for you to follow if something has happened to me. If I am missing, or God forbid something worse has happened, please follow these instructions.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p> </p><ul>
<li><em><span>Get away from the house. Inside the glove box of my car, you will find a small road atlas. On the page marked with a blue sticky note, you will find our house marked with a blue circle, and a handful of locations marked in red. Go to one of those locations marked in red.</span></em></li>
</ul><ul>
<li><span>At these locations, you will find a gnome with a red hat. Remove the hat of the gnome and take the key out of the pill bottle. That key will grant you access to the safe house.</span></li>
</ul><ul>
<li><span>Safe houses are equipped with go-bags much like the ones I keep at the house in the closet by the back door. The things in those bags are intended to keep you alive. You will find clothes, medical supplies, blanks for false papers, and nonperishable food. At least one of the bags has a handgun in it, as well as ammunition. Please be careful with that, but I know you already know this. Don’t think I haven’t been aware of Remy taking you out for “ice cream”; a gun range has a very specific smell to it.</span></li>
</ul><ul>
<li><span>In one of those bags, as well as in the glove box in my car, you will find a Bureau-issued cell phone. Should you need to contact anybody, use the Bureau-issued phone or my phone, which runs on the same system, as my phone is also Bureau-issued. Do not use your own phone; shut that down as soon as you can.</span></li>
</ul><ul>
<li><span>Contact Remy, Roman, or Remus, if you can. They can help you navigate this situation.</span></li>
</ul><ul>
<li><span>If you cannot get a hold of Remy, Roman, or Remus, contact the Bureau itself. The contact “00 Emergencies” will connect you. Press 1, and follow the prompts from there.</span></li>
</ul><ul>
<li><span>While in contact with the Bureau, make sure you inform them of what safe house you are at, and let them know if you have anybody with you. They will send someone to get you, so remain at the safe house. Do not leave unless you absolutely have to.</span></li>
</ul><ul>
<li><span>Stay on guard. You don’t know who could be watching you at any time, nor what they could be capable of. As such, do not take any chances.</span></li>
</ul><ul>
<li><span>Do anything you feel you have to in order to keep yourself safe. I have taught you all I could as you’ve grown up. How to pick locks, how to secure a room, how to crack basic codes, how to read maps, how to lie, how to fight. I need you to remember those lessons, and put them to use. Remember, Patton, if you are worried about being hurt, then seek knowledge. It is our greatest weapon, and our greatest defense.</span></li>
</ul><p> </p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Follow these instructions, keep yourself safe. You can worry about me after you are out of immediate danger. I know it is in your nature to worry about the wellbeing of those around you, but please, Patton, for right now, I want you to worry about yourself.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Finally, I want you to remember that I love you. You are my world, Patton. Everything I have taught you, everything I have done for you, has been intended to keep you as safe as I could. No matter what happens, no matter what you have to do, remember that I love you more than anything. So long as you remember what I’ve taught you, and remember that I love you, I will always be by your side.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Take care of yourself, Patton. I love you.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Cenn.</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Patton took a breath and pulled his phone out of one of the pockets of his suit, holding the power key to shut the device down. He lay back down on the sofa, staring at the last line of Logan’s note to him as he finally fell asleep, hoping against hope that this was all some sort of bad dream.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Hope It's Enough</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Heads up for this chapter! This chapter depicts what happened before Patton, Virgil, Janus, and Emile returned from the Formal. That being said, look out for descriptions of fighting, gunfire, some mentions of blood, and kidnapping.</p><p>This one's a tad shorter, the next chapter is a little over twice this length. So, you'll have that to look forward to!</p><p>This is also the official half-way point for the story! 11 chapters down, 11 to go!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Logan had watched their son, nephew, and their friends leave in their car, headed to the Fall Formal. They had all looked fantastic, and Logan could only hope all the teens had a good time. They sat back down in the armchair they had been occupying, and picked up their phone. Ever since the last incident a few weeks ago, Logan had been writing a note on their phone for Patton. Instructions on what to do should anything happen to them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They kept things fairly straight forward. They let Patton know that they couldn’t promise their own safety if he was in a situation where he was reading the note, and told him that whatever state they were in at that moment didn’t matter; what mattered was that Patton was reading the note. Most of the note was made up of a list, things to do if Logan either went missing, or if they were killed. That was something they couldn’t bring themself to type out, no matter how many times they tried, so they just heavily implied the possibility.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan made sure to tell Patton where to find the safe houses, and how to get inside a safe house. They told him that the safe houses had go-bags much like the ones they packed at the house, and informed him that he would find a Bureau-issued cell phone, and a gun with ammunition in one of the bags. Considering the number of times Remy had taken Patton out for “ice cream” and the pair had returned smelling as if they had been at a gun range, Logan knew that Patton would know how to handle the firearm. They told Patton not to use his own phone, and to shut the device down. Patton’s phone would be easy for someone to trace.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They told Patton to contact Remy, Roman, or Remus using either their phone, or the Bureau-issued phone in the go-bag. They made sure to include directions on how to contact the Bureau if the others didn’t pick up, and made it clear that he needed to stay at the safe house if that were the case, telling him that someone would come and get him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They told him to keep his guard up, as you could never know anybody’s intentions. They told him that they had taught him everything they could while he was growing up, from how to pick locks and secure a room, to how to lie and fight. They told him to remember that knowledge was his greatest weapon and his greatest defense.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan read over the points in the list. Satisfied that everything they really needed to include was there, they added a few more things. They told Patton to worry about himself, despite his nature to worry about those around him. They reminded him that they loved him. They signed the note not with their name, but with </span>
  <em>
    <span>Cenn</span>
  </em>
  <span>, the name Patton had called them since he was young.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan saved the note, using the title </span>
  <em>
    <span>FOR PATTON, </span>
  </em>
  <span>hoping that the short title and all capital notation would make it clear that the information the note contained was important. Just as they saved the note, Logan heard someone pull up in the driveway. It was far too early for Patton and the others to be back, they had just left hardly half an hour ago, and Logan had gotten the text from Patton that they had arrived safely at the venue, sending a short reply to let their son know they received the message. Logan immediately pocketed their phone and grabbed the small sidearm they kept in the table beside their chair.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Several loud bangs sounded from the front door, and Logan knew what the sound meant. Someone was trying to kick in the door. They heard a similar sound from the back door, and quickly ducked behind the kitchen island. It wasn’t the best cover, but it would be better than nothing. The front and back doors gave out and slammed against the walls at almost the same time, and Logan listened carefully for their footsteps. The agent knew there wasn’t much they could do; with intruders at the front and back, they were cornered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan poked their head out from behind the kitchen island to spot one of the intruders coming around the corner from the entryway. The intruder hardly seemed to notice, and Logan darted back out of sight, taking a slow breath to steady themself. They tucked their gun into their waistband, ensuring the safety was on as they did so. They grabbed the heavy rolling pin from its spot under the island, and gripped it tightly. As the intruder came to investigate the kitchen, they made their move, hitting them in the back of the knee with the rolling pin.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The man yelled, falling to the floor. He swung at Logan, narrowly missing them as they ducked. Logan quickly stood, turning and coming face to face with the other intruder, who held one of the chairs from the dining area. The man swung the chair at Logan, and they managed to duck down just in time for the wooden chair to miss, leading it to be swung right into the wall, breaking part of the chair with a loud crack. Logan swung the rolling pin at the knees of the man who held the chair. The other man fell, swinging part of the broken chair in his hands at Logan as they went down, cutting Logan’s arm.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan scrambled to their feet, pushing the man who had hurt them and causing both intruders to fall to the floor. They tried to get away from the two men, only to have one of them grab their ankle, causing them to fall. Logan kicked at the offending hand with the heel of their free foot, and quickly scrambled to their feet, grabbing one of the chairs that still stood by the dining table. When one of the men tried to use the rolling pin to hit them over the head, Logan blocked the motion with the chair, before swinging it at the man, hitting them in the torso. While the intruders were distracted, Logan overturned the table, blocking themself in the corner by the hutch. They grabbed a couple of the dishes and threw them in order to try to distract the intruders, and gave themself just enough of an opening to run by.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>In the front entryway, Logan found another intruder. They cursed to themself, backing away as they spotted a knife in the man’s hand. The man lunged at them, and Logan stepped back, taking hold of the man’s wrist and turning, forcing them to hit the wall. He hit with enough force to knock a photo of Patton off the wall, resulting in the sound of breaking glass. While the intruder was distracted, Logan ran into the living room, jumping the sofa and pushing it out of its usual place in the process. They hardly had their bearings as they hurried by the armchair, shoulder-checking it and knocking the piece of furniture onto its back.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They hurried down the hall, finding someone else in the back doorway. The agent did the only thing they could at that second and darted into their office, getting around the desk. Two of the intruders entered after they did, and Logan sighed to themself; they had just gotten new monitors hooked up to replace the ones that were damaged in the last break-in. They overturned the desk, opening up enough of a window for them to dash out of the room.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan made their way down the hall, back towards the stairs, taking their sidearm out now that they had a second to do so. They flicked off the safety and fired a round at one of the men, hitting them in the side. It wasn’t fatal, but at least it was distracting enough for Logan to run to the stairs. Logan encountered the knife-wielding intruder on the stairs, and after a scuffle that went on far longer than Logan would have liked, resulting in them getting several more cuts and even being stabbed in the side and shoulder, they managed to get away, rushing up the stairs as a photo was taken off the wall and thrown at them with enough force to break the frame.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The agent got to their bedroom and shut the door, pushing the dresser over to block it and buy some time. They noticed how they left bloody handprints on the dresser, and knew that there would be streaks all over the house. Logan fell back onto the bed, attempting to come up with a plan. They didn’t have much time for that, as the intruders started to try to break into the room. When the door opened a bit, Logan pulled their weapon, firing at the intruders. They caught one in the shoulder, and another in the hand, resulting in several curses. What they hadn’t planned on was the intruders firing back at them, though they really should have expected it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan cursed as they were shot in the right shoulder and in their left side. They were on the second floor, and knew they had stupidly cornered themself. They fired again at the door, and attempted to take out their phone to contact Remy, Roman, or Remus, though they didn’t have time. Their barricade gave way, and three of the intruders rushed in, one brandishing part of a broken dining room chair and one with the rolling pin.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The intruders rushed them, and struck them several times as they tried to defend themself. They were struck several times, leaving bruises and gashes, and finally were struck in the head. Logan dropped their phone by the foot of the bed as they fell unconscious.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Logan woke up with a throbbing headache. Their surroundings were blurry as they opened their eyes and attempted to look around. They found their wrists and ankles were bound, and they sat on a folding chair in a dark room. Logan tried to remember exactly what had happened, and sighed as they remembered the break-in. They didn’t feel their phone in their pocket, and could only hope that they had dropped it at the house so that Patton would find it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That was when they heard a couple of others behind them, groaning. They looked over their left shoulder and found Remus, then looked over their right shoulder to find Remy. There only seemed to be three chairs in the room, which signaled to them that whoever had taken them hadn’t gotten Roman.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Considering their situation, Logan could only sigh, hoping that the note they left on their phone and the lessons they had done their best to teach Patton would be enough to help Patton figure out how to navigate the situation before him.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. A New Day</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Patton woke up to see his friends gathering in the living area of the safe house. He sat up, rubbing his eyes. Logan’s phone was still next to him, and he sighed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You guys need to turn off your phones,” Patton stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do you mean?” Emile questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Pull out your phones and shut them down. Whoever broke into the house could trace them. Mine’s already off, just do it,” Patton told them. The others did as they were told, taking out their cell phones and shutting the devices off.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I need to make a couple of calls. I think there’s some cereal in the backpacks, or there might be something in the cabinets,” he stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The others didn’t argue, they just nodded and went about trying to pull together something to eat. Meanwhile, Patton stepped away, going into one of the bedrooms and pulling up Remy’s contact first. After a couple of attempts, both ringing out to voicemail, Patton moved on to call Remus’ phone, with the same result. Finally, he called Roman’s phone. The first attempt rang out, and he tried again. This time, Roman picked up on the second ring.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Hello…?”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Roman’s tired-sounding voice came through.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Um, Roman? It’s Patton Holmes… Logan’s son?” Patton replied. “Something happened last night, Cenn’s missing, I’m at a safe house with my cousin and a couple of friends, the house was a disaster, there was blood…” the boy couldn’t keep himself from rambling a bit, his fear starting to take over.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Whoa, whoa, hold on, slow down,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Roman told him. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Go back a little, Logan’s missing?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Patton confirmed, taking a slow breath. “Janus, Emile, Virgil, and I got back from the Formal last night, and the lights were on at the house and the front and back doors were kicked in. There was blood, and stuff was thrown around and broken. I couldn’t find Cenn anywhere, their computer and external harddrive were missing. I just grabbed the go-bags out of the closet and got us away from the house,” he explained, trying to keep as calm as he could.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Okay, did you try calling Remy and Remus?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“A couple times each, it just rang out to voicemail.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Shit. What safe house are you at?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“How do I know?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Do you remember what it said on the key in Logan’s road atlas?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Uh, I think it was Emergency Rendezvous One.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Okay, I know where you guys are, stay there, okay? All of you. There’s four of you, right?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, me and three others.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I’m on my way, you guys stay where you are. We’ll figure this out, Patton.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Roman, I’m scared… What if they’re gone…?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“We’re not gonna think about that right now. Logan’s one of the best agents I’ve seen, they know how to handle themself. We’re going to worry about getting you kids safe, for now.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay… We’ll see you soon.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“We’ll figure this out, Patton.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>With their conversation finished, Roman hung up, as did Patton. He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. For all he knew, Logan was dead, their body dumped somewhere nobody would find them. He didn’t know if he could handle that possibility. For now, he tried not to think about it; he had his friends to worry about. He tucked Logan’s phone into the pocket of the sweatpants he was wearing, and went back to join the others.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Emile, Janus, and Virgil were all sitting at the dining table, leaving a space for Patton. They each had a granola bar from one of the go-bags, and one was set on the table for Patton. It wasn’t much, but it was better than nothing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Who did you call?” Janus asked him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I tried to get in touch with some of the guys Cenn works with,” Patton told him. “Two of them didn’t pick up, but the third one did. He’s on his way to help us figure this all out.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Who’s coming?” Emile questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Roman,” Patton replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This is insane,” Virgil mumbled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll say,” Janus replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, what do we do for now?” Emile asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“All we can really do is wait for Roman to get here,” Patton responded. He opened up his granola bar and took a bite.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This is </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> gonna be a good day…” Virgil muttered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ll be fine, Evan Hansen,” Janus quipped. It got a small chuckle out of Virgil. “Roman can probably get your backpacks from Logan’s, and maybe my kit. I don’t have a patch with me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I could text him and see,” Patton offered, pulling out Logan’s phone and sending Roman a text asking if he could get Virgil and Emile’s backpacks and Janus’ testosterone patches. A moment later, Roman sent a thumbs-up and said that he might be a little later from grabbing the bags, but he could manage it. “You guys are set. He’ll be a couple minutes later, but you’ll have what you need.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, Patton,” Virgil replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, thanks,” Janus echoed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton simply nodded, finishing his granola bar and getting up to toss the wrapper. While he was up, he grabbed the charger from his go-bag and plugged in Logan’s phone to charge it. Considering the circumstances, he didn’t want to risk having the battery to their only lifeline die on them. With Logan’s phone charging, Patton went to find the go-bag Logan had said would be at the safe house, and eventually found a grey duffel bag packed with various supplies. He found the Bureau-issued phone Logan had mentioned, and the gun and ammunition. He checked the gun over, double checking that the safety was on, before putting it away.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Who wants to get showered and dressed first?” Patton asked, returning to the group.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You can, if you want, Pat,” Emile offered. “You’re the one taking the lead on this thing, you deserve to take a few minutes to yourself.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton was about to argue, when Virgil chimed in. “Emile’s right. You’ve been taking the wheel non-stop since we found the state of Logan’s place. Take a few minutes to yourself.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You need it, Patton,” Janus agreed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton sighed a bit, but nodded. “Alright,” he accepted. He grabbed the black and blue backpack and went into the bathroom. The boy took a quick shower and pulled on a set of clothes from the backpack; a set of jeans and a blue and white striped T-shirt, and the set of sneakers that were in the bag, which were just his size, and likely had been one of the spare sets Logan had picked up one time when they had gone shoe shopping together. After finger-combing his hair, Patton stepped out of the bathroom, bringing the bag with him, and letting the next person, Janus, get cleaned up and changed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The teens were each fairly quick in getting showered and changed, with Virgil being the last person to do so, and coming out just as Roman arrived. The man knocked at the door, and Patton checked that it was him before opening it, letting him enter. Roman carried Emile and Virgil’s backpacks, and a drawstring backpack from Janus’ room. Each of the bag’s owners took their belongings from the agent, thanking him. Virgil took his anxiety medication, while Janus grabbed one of his patches and went to put it on, and Emile put on the blue bracelet that was in his bag.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay, first things first, are all you guys okay?” Roman questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Physically or otherwise?” Virgil replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ll start physically speaking, Robert Downer Jr.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’re all okay physically,” Patton told him. “None of us got hurt, we all got there after everything happened, and I was the only one to go inside.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“First of all, good to know you guys are okay. Second of all,” Roman turned to Patton, “</span>
  <em>
    <span>that</span>
  </em>
  <span> could have been an </span>
  <em>
    <span>extremely</span>
  </em>
  <span> dangerous move. I’m glad you’re okay, but don’t put yourself into situations like that without backup.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Told you,” Janus chimed in, crossing his arms over his chest.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not the time,” Patton countered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And otherwise, how are you kids?” Roman redirected.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shaken, I think might be the best word for it,” Janus answered. The other teens nodded in agreement.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Understandable,” Roman replied. “We’ll figure this out.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What are we going to do, now?” Patton asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, since you couldn’t get Remy nor Remus on the line, then that means something happened to </span>
  <em>
    <span>them</span>
  </em>
  <span> as well. I tried calling and got the same result you did, which is, less than promising.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Could this be connected to the last time?” Emile asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That break in before I moved in?” Janus questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I heard about that, didn’t someone break in and steal a harddrive or something?” Virgil piped up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Patton answered. “Cenn’s harddrive was stolen, and a couple of windows were broken.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It </span>
  <em>
    <span>could</span>
  </em>
  <span> be connected,” Roman told the boys. “I’m not certain whether it is or isn’t, but there’s a chance. Considering the damage at the house, I’m more on the side of there </span>
  <em>
    <span>is</span>
  </em>
  <span> some connection.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, what position does that leave us in?” Janus asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, we’ll probably have to get you guys to the Bureau, get statements, find out how much you guys know and don’t know. From there, you two,” he motioned to Virgil and Emile, “will probably get a ride home. Janus and Patton are another story. You guys’ll probably be put in a safehouse with an agent until something else can be figured out. It’s not safe at Logan’s, that’s for sure.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My parents both know Janus,” Virgil spoke up. “He’s basically another kid to them. I’m sure they’d be willing to figure something out to have Janus and Patton stay with us.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That might not be safe, right now,” Roman told him. “The idea is fine, but we can’t pull your folks into this.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then how is it safe for us to go home, since we’re involved?” Emile questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s why I said </span>
  <em>
    <span>probably</span>
  </em>
  <span>. I’m not fully certain what’s gonna happen with you kids, I’m just trying my best,” Roman replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, you’re gonna take us to the Bureau?” Patton asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My car seats five, but I doubt you guys want to leave Logan’s car here,” Roman stated. “You said you drove here, Patton?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah,” the boy replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can you drive Logan’s car to the Bureau? You’ll be following me the entire way.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I can do that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Whenever you guys are ready, we can get going,” Roman determined.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton and the others packed their clothes from the Formal as carefully as they could, and Patton grabbed the go-bag from the safe house, deciding to pull on the shoulder holster that was in the bag and situating the gun where it belonged after triple checking the safety, along with the ammunition. He pulled a hoodie from the black and green bag that had come with the group from Logan’s stash at the house, finding it was one of Logan’s zipper-front hoodies, and pulled it on, hiding the holster and gun in his possession. He picked up the grey duffle bag and the black and blue backpack and brought them out to Logan’s car, setting them in the trunk. While the others got everything settled in Roman’s car, Patton put the key to the safe house back in the pill bottle, and put the bottle back inside the gnome by the front steps.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton sighed, adjusting Logan’s hoodie over his shoulders. He watched as his friends and cousin got into Roman’s car, before he got into the driver’s seat of Logan’s. Roman pulled out first, and Patton followed. He drove just behind Roman all the way to the Bureau offices, and parked in the spot beside him. Patton made sure he had Logan’s phone with him, and took the key out of the ignition, getting out of the car and meeting with Roman and the others. Roman told them they didn’t need to bring any of the bags up with them, and the only bag that did come with them was one that Patton grabbed, as it was Logan’s go-bag from the house, and would possibly contain something useful.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The five made their way inside, and the four boys each got a guest card, while Roman quickly put his lanyard on over his head. They made their way up to Logan’s office, with Janus and Virgil looking around curiously. When they got to the office, Roman sat down at Logan’s computer and turned it on, while the teens all settled into different seats around the room. Janus and Virgil sat on the small sofa, and Virgil wrapped an arm around Janus’ shoulders, letting the smaller boy lean against him. Emile sat on one of the small armchairs, and Patton claimed the other, setting Logan’s bag by his feet.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, what do we do, now?” Emile asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“For now, I’m gonna try to run a ping on Remy and Remus’ phones, and see if I can find them,” Roman replied. “Remus I can see not picking up, they lose their phone a lot. But Remy? That man’s phone is basically his second heart, he </span>
  <em>
    <span>never</span>
  </em>
  <span> has it out of arm’s reach, and he </span>
  <em>
    <span>never</span>
  </em>
  <span> lets the battery go dead. If </span>
  <em>
    <span>he’s</span>
  </em>
  <span> not picking up, there’s a problem.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, you’ll see if you can find them, and we’ll go from there, whether there’s a lead or not?” Patton asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Exactly. You guys just sit tight, once I get this running, we can look into getting you guys some drinks and something to eat,” Roman informed them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sounds good,” Virgil replied, his voice muffled a bit from the fact his chin was resting on top of Janus’ head. The blonde boy wore the capelet that went with his suit from the Formal, having taken a liking to the garment.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The other teens agreed with Virgil. Something to drink and a proper breakfast sounded pretty good after last night’s chaos and the small granola bars they’d had earlier.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton watched as Roman logged into Logan’s computer and set about getting the program running to try to trace Remy and Remus’ phones. He watched the agent for a while, before glancing over at his friends. Emile seemed to be mostly alright, though he was reasonably shaken. Virgil seemed less okay on his own, but with Janus by his side, he seemed to be doing alright. Patton couldn’t help but notice how preoccupied Janus seemed. He hadn’t read the note that was taped to Janus’ notebook, believing it was his cousin’s business, not his, but now, seeing how Janus seemed to have somewhat shut down in the wake of everything, he was growing concerned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay, I’ve got the system scanning for any pings off the phones,” Roman muttered. “I need to plug you four into the system so the Bureau knows you’re on our watch. Gonna need full legal names for you all.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Patton Amare Holmes,” Patton relayed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Virgil Anthony Morrison,” Virgil told him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Emile Milo Picani,” Emile chimed in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can you spell your last name for me?” Roman asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“P-I-C-A-N-I,” Emile spelled out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you. And Janus?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus straightened up a bit and sighed, “Juliette Diana Prescott,” he stated. Before Roman had the chance to ask, he answered the man’s question, “Janus Dolion is my preferred name. I haven’t been able to have it legally changed, yet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We gotta get you in to actually get that done,” Virgil told him. “That name does </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> suit you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Janus is </span>
  <em>
    <span>way</span>
  </em>
  <span> better,” Patton agreed. “Did Aunt April help you pick it?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Janus smiled. “Mom always liked Roman mythology, and she helped me find the name Janus. Dolion is Greek, but I really liked how the two kind of paired up, so I went with it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay, you guys are all in the system. You’ll probably have Watch ID cards by the end of the day, considering the circumstances,” Roman told the group.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Watch IDs?” Patton asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’re similar to the guest cards you’ve got now, and the access cards those who work here are issued,” Roman answered. “They dictate that you’re officially under the Bureau’s watch. You’ll have access to certain areas of the building, and you’ll be able to get more information than you would be allowed on a guest card. And, having you in our system means that we can inform your families and school as to where you are. Considering what’s going on, there’s no knowing just what measures we’ll have to take to make sure you kids are all safe.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, we might not be at school on Monday?” Emile asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s a possibility,” Roman told him. “Nothing’s set in stone, yet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton and the others nodded a bit, and settled in. Virgil fell asleep with Janus leaning on him, while Janus simply played with the string on Virgil’s hoodie. Emile had found a pen and some blank paper, and decided to simply doodle, and Patton couldn’t seem to focus on anything. His mind was all over the place, and he couldn’t get it to make any sense.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Roman, would it be okay if I go walk around?” the teen questioned. “Just in the halls, y’know?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I guess so,” Roman told him. “The building’s pretty secure, so I don’t think there’s much to worry about. Take Lo’s phone with you, though, just in case?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I was planning to,” Patton replied, pulling the cell phone in question out of his pocket to show Roman, before slipping it back into the spot where he’d been keeping it. He stood up and left the office, shutting the door behind him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton made his way down the hall, tucking his hands into the pockets of his jeans. He didn’t remember the exact route Logan had shown him the last time he’d been in the building, so he simply decided to wander the halls. The boy passed by several adults who were walking or idly chatting in the hall, silently hoping they couldn’t question the presence of a teenage boy walking alone around the building. He walked for what felt like quite some time, just trying to pull his thoughts together, when he came upon a familiar spot; the common area Logan had brought him to. Patton felt the corner of his lips twitch into a quick smile, and made his way over to a seat that was by the window, but away from most of the other seats in the room. He sat down, hunching over a bit to let his elbows rest on his knees. The boy pulled the hood of his jacket up over his head, and removed his glasses, hooking them onto the lanyard around his neck to free up his hands, which he went on to drag down his face as he let out a quiet groan of frustration. Patton let his hands hang limp between his knees, and looked out the window in front of him. He couldn’t see much aside from the blurry outlines of the buildings, considering he didn’t have his glasses on, but he didn’t really care.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What would you do, Cenn?” the teen asked, speaking to himself. “If it were me and Janus, what would you do?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They would tear this city apart brick by brick to find you,” a voice responded. Patton couldn’t help but jump and look towards the unfamiliar voice. He found a man who looked to be a bit older than Logan, wearing a </span>
  <em>
    <span>Steven Universe</span>
  </em>
  <span> T-shirt under a brown blazer. Like many of the other adults Patton had seen around the building, this man wore a lanyard around his neck. The lanyard had rainbow stripes running along its length, and a handful of buttons pinned to it. Patton found he couldn’t stifle his soft giggle when he put his glasses on to look at the man properly, and found one of the buttons was black, with the text </span>
  <em>
    <span>Could Be Gayer</span>
  </em>
  <span> in flowing script, with the first two words being white, and the third being a colorful rainbow.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s not really any use then, is it?” Patton mused. “We’re just kids…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You have help, though,” the stranger replied, taking a seat in the only other chair in this corner.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You don’t know the full story, do you?” the boy questioned. “Cenn is </span>
  <em>
    <span>missing</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Uncle Remy is </span>
  <em>
    <span>missing</span>
  </em>
  <span> and </span>
  <em>
    <span>off the grid</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Remus is </span>
  <em>
    <span>missing</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Roman is </span>
  <em>
    <span>one man</span>
  </em>
  <span>, and Emile, Janus, Virgil, and I are just… We’re just </span>
  <em>
    <span>kids</span>
  </em>
  <span>! Out of the four of us, </span>
  <em>
    <span>I’m</span>
  </em>
  <span> the only one who can fucking </span>
  <em>
    <span>drive</span>
  </em>
  <span>! We have no resources, no connections, no training. There’s only so much four kids and one adult can do…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Instead of being upset or offended by Patton’s outburst, the adult beside him said nothing for a moment. He let Patton take a few deep breaths, watching as the boy slowly tapped his fingers against his leg as he did so. After the teen had seemingly calmed down, the man spoke. “You’re right. There is only so much you can do. But, do you know what those limits are?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton tilted his head a bit, thinking for a second before responding. “Well, no… But, this is so much </span>
  <em>
    <span>bigger</span>
  </em>
  <span> than something like a couple missing homework pages or a lost lanyard.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This </span>
  <em>
    <span>is</span>
  </em>
  <span> big, but, you’re a smart kid. And you’re not alone. You’ve got your friends, and Crown is one of our best. I know Logan taught you a lot, way more than you probably realize. They prepared you for this sort of thing. Do what feels right.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Who are you?” Patton finally realized that he hadn’t gotten this stranger’s name.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thomas Sanders,” the adult replied. Patton watched as the man turned his access card around to show him, and gasped quietly when he saw the man was the Bureau’s </span>
  <em>
    <span>Director</span>
  </em>
  <span>. This was Logan’s boss.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh my goodness,” Patton uttered. “I am </span>
  <em>
    <span>so</span>
  </em>
  <span> sorry, I-I didn’t realize you were-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, hey, Kiddo, it’s fine,” Thomas chuckled. “Roman sent me a write-up of what he knew as soon as he logged on. You’re confused, stressed, probably scared, I’m not surprised you snapped a bit.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m not really one to, y’know, yell and swear at an adult. Cenn raised me better than that…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They also raised you to know when it’s a good time to raise hell,” Thomas pointed out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I guess… They taught me a lot,” Patton agreed. “Cenn always said that knowledge is our greatest weapon and our greatest defense… I guess now’s the time to really use what I know as a weapon.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I agree,” Thomas smiled. “You have all the know-how you need. You just have to take that first step.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah…” Patton nodded. “Thank you, Mr. Sanders.” He gave a little smile to the adult as he stood up, pulling his hood off his head. “I guess I should get back to the others.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Thomas gave a nod, “Probably. I should get back to work. That was a good talk, Patton,” he smiled. With that, he stood and watched as Patton left the room ahead of him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton made his way back to Logan’s office without too much trouble, seeing as he actually paid attention to some of the signs that pointed to certain areas of the building, this time. When he arrived, he felt a bit better, even if he still didn’t have much of a plan, he at least had some fuzzy beginnings of ideas. He entered the office to find his cousin and friends alone, chatting with one another. They paused when he entered, and Emile waved him over.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Roman went to get breakfast. I just gave him your usual order,” Emile told him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks,” Patton smiled. “Didn’t think I was gone </span>
  <em>
    <span>that </span>
  </em>
  <span>long…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil shrugged, “Sometimes you just gotta take a breather.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Patton agreed. “So… We need to come up with some kind of plan.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Roman said that he couldn’t get a ping off Remy’s phone,” Emile informed his friend.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Meaning we really don’t have a starting point to come up with anything,” Virgil sighed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton frowned a bit at hearing this, and bit the inside of his lip in thought, trying to think of what Logan would have them do. “Well… If Cenn were here, they’d have us come up with a list of everyone’s strengths and that kind of thing. Maybe we could do that?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sounds like as good a starting point as any,” Janus shrugged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then let’s get to it!” Emile exclaimed, grabbing his pen and some paper.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The boys all shifted a bit, forming a circle around the coffee table that was in the office. Emile offered to be the scribe of the group, and divided the paper into four sections, titling each one with a boy’s name. From there, the work began.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>#LetPattonCuss</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Lists and Revelations</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Heads up for this chapter! There's mention of basically being forced into organized crime (it's only referenced and not detailed, coming from Virgil), as well as deadnaming/misgendering (in a note left for Janus written by his Father). The note is pretty important going into the next couple of chapters, but I'll still book-end it with three asterisks (like so: ***) just to give a little heads up that it's coming.</p><p>Also! The code at the end of this chapter CAN be solved! I made sure of it. So, if you feel up to the task, you can give it a shot. The answer will be in next week's chapter.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Who should go first?” Emile asked, looking to Patton for guidance. On the coffee table in front of him, he had some paper, which he had divided into four sections with the name of one of each of the boys written at the top.</p><p>“Maybe you?” Virgil suggested. “You’re the one writing this stuff down, after all. Could make it easier to start with you, so you can focus on writing down everything else without having to think of what you bring to the table.”</p><p>“Good idea!” Emile smiled. “I guess I’m pretty good at figuring out how people might be feeling, and getting them to talk about that,” he mused, writing down what he was talking about.</p><p>“You’re great at keeping stuff organized, too,” Patton told him. “And you know about camping and survival stuff, that could be really helpful,” the boy pointed out. Emile wrote the points down.</p><p>The boys discussed other strengths Emile had; he was one of the taller boys in the group, but also agile and strong from years of dance lessons, and he could get into and out of places where a lot of people couldn’t.</p><p>As the teens wrapped up Emile’s list, Roman returned with the food and drinks he’d gone to pick up. He handed out the various drinks, breakfast sandwiches, and muffins to the boys, claiming a cup of iced tea and a strawberry muffin for himself. “What’re you guys up to?”</p><p>“We’re making a list of our strengths so we know what our team is working with,” Patton told him. “We’re all involved in this mess, anyways, so we might as well do what we can to help.”</p><p>“You kids are nuts,” Roman remarked, before taking a seat on the floor with the four boys. “You’re nuts, but you’re right. Who’re we on?”</p><p>“Patton?” Emile suggested.</p><p>“Well… Aside from Roman, I’m the only other person here who can drive,” Patton shrugged. “And Cenn taught me a lot while I was growing up. I can pick locks, secure rooms, fight, crack basic codes, read maps. Uncle Remy taught me evasive driving maneuvers and how to shoot, too.”</p><p>“Wait, you know how to do <em> what </em>?” Virgil questioned.</p><p>“I know how to shoot a gun,” Patton told him, as if he were telling the other boy he knew how to bake a cake or change a tire. “I’m pretty good at it, too.”</p><p>“Remy took you to Downs’ Range, didn’t he?” Roman chimed in.</p><p>“Yep! Then we’d go get ice cream, so that we <em> technically </em> weren’t lying to Cenn.”</p><p>“Logan doesn’t know that you know how to<em> fire a weapon </em>?” Janus asked.</p><p>“They do not,” Patton confirmed.</p><p>“I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, J,” Virgil stated. “Your cousin is a <em> pastel badass </em>.”</p><p>“I’m with the Creepy Cookie,” Roman agreed. “I did <em> not </em> expect that.”</p><p>Patton couldn’t help but giggle a bit. “I can sneak into and out of places, too. And I’m pretty good at talking my way into and out of things.”</p><p>Emile wrote everything down, seemingly the only person who <em> wasn’t </em> surprised by the fact that Patton could fire a gun. “Who’s next?”</p><p>“I’m pretty good with technology,” Virgil offered up. “Computers, communications, that kind of stuff. Gotten into some pretty tight systems before.”</p><p>“That could be <em> really </em> helpful,” Roman stated. “That’s a lot of what Logan does.”</p><p>“And I know my way around the more, well, <em> dangerous </em> parts of the city.”</p><p>“What do you mean?” Patton asked, tilting his head a little bit in question.</p><p>Virgil bit his lower lip, seeming to consider his next words carefully. After a moment of silence, he sighed, pulling a slim wallet out of the back pocket of his jeans. He opened it up and set it on the table for the others to see. The badge inside the wallet was instantly recognizable for Janus and Roman.</p><p>“You’re associated with the <em> Venom Order </em>?” Roman asked, his tone becoming serious.</p><p>“As a go-between,” Virgil quickly told him. “I mostly run information, sometimes weapons. Only within the city, between members. I fucked up in like, eighth grade, and the only way to save my ass was to make a deal to work with them until I turn eighteen.”</p><p>“You know they’ll find a way to keep you longer,” Roman pointed out.</p><p>“I know that. I’ve been planning to leave the city the <em> day </em> I turn eighteen.”</p><p>“That’s why you’ve been taking more weapon runs…” Janus mumbled.</p><p>“Better payout,” Virgil nodded.</p><p>“Janus, did you…” Patton began, though his voice trailed off.</p><p>“I knew,” the blonde boy confirmed. “I was sworn to secrecy.”</p><p>Patton looked to his cousin, concerned. He didn’t know all the details, but he knew Janus had been through quite a bit, especially recently, and this was just one more thing to add to that pile. “What about that note that was taped to your notebook? What did that say?” he didn’t even realize what he was asking until the words had already left his mouth.</p><p>“I still haven’t read it,” Janus confessed. “I was… I was too afraid…”</p><p>“Hey, you don’t need to be ashamed of that,” Emile told him. “This is scary for all of us. But, that note could be important.”</p><p>“Where’s that notebook?” Roman asked.</p><p>“In the black and yellow backpack, in your car,” Janus told him. “It’s bright yellow, with snake stickers.”</p><p>“I’ll grab it, you guys stay here, keep working on those lists,” Roman told them, as he stood from where he was sitting on the floor. The agent left the office, making his way out to the car.</p><p>“Anything else to add to your list, Virgil?” Emile asked, looking towards the purple-haired teen.</p><p>“Uh, I guess I can fight up close, and I know chemistry, so maybe that could be helpful? I dunno, there’s not a lot to me…” Virgil shrugged, watching as Emile wrote down the new points.</p><p>“All those skills are going to be helpful, Virgil,” Janus assured him.</p><p>“That just leaves you, Janus,” Emile pointed out.</p><p>“Well, like Virgil, I know my way around the city,” the blonde boy answered. “I’m skilled when it comes to various aspects of disguise; makeup and clothing, mostly. Similarly to Virgil, I can fight up close, considering I normally carry a knife, and though I’m not well practiced, I do know how to shoot. Along with that, I deal in lies and deception. If you need someone to talk their way into a situation, get information out of someone, and the like, I can assist.”</p><p>Emile wrote down everything Janus listed off, and the group discussed the list they had compiled. A few more points were added; Janus had done gymnastics and ballet to at least some capacity for much of his life, which gave him skills similar to Emile when it came to the potential for slipping into places the others couldn’t get to. Virgil knew where the group could get their hands on certain supplies, should they end up needing them. Patton and Emile could both get a store clerk to leave them alone in the space with how trustworthy and gentle they seemed. These points were all added to their respective lists, and eventually, they had information they could really work with.</p><p>Roman returned with Janus’ notebook, and passed it to the blonde teen. “Let’s see what that note says, huh?”</p><p>“Yeah…” Janus sighed, pulling the note out of the book. He’d taken the tape off, and simply tucked the folded paper in between the pages to prevent loss or damage. He unfolded the note, smoothing out the crease as he did, and set the note on the surface of the coffee table.</p><p>***</p><p>In flowing handwritten script, standing out from the white page in dark orange ink, the note read:</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Juliette, </em>
</p><p><em> I am disappointed in how sloppy you and your little </em> <b> <em>friends </em> </b> <em> were. Did you really think </em> <b> <em>all</em> </b> <em> of those cameras were non-functional? </em></p><p>
  <em> I raised you better than that. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> I gave you plenty of chances, but now it seems it’s time to raise the stakes. And since your Uncle is involved with the Bureau, it’s a two-for-one deal. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> He is safe, for the time being, as are the other two. But for you, and Spider, and your cousin? Time is ticking. </em>
</p><p><em> This is a game, now. A hunt and a race, if you will. A race against time. You’ll get a clue here and there, but know that this won’t be easy. You are </em> <b> <em>my</em> </b> <em> daughter, after all. </em></p><p>
  <em> You know what the Order has been planning. You know what we want to do, and when. That final meeting will be your deadline. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> We’ll start simple. </em>
</p><p><em> Your time starts </em> <b> <em>now</em> </b> <em> . </em></p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Aqf Emab Idm </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Gwc pidm bpm smg </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Rcab jm aczm </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Bpib gwc izm vwb ammv </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Good Luck, </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Father </em>
</p><p>***</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>If you think you've solved the code, want to discuss the story without worrying about spoiling the story for others, or want to see what else goes on in this chaotic brain of mine, check out my Tumblr @SML8180!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Start the Clock</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Quick heads up for this chapter! This chapter contains mentions of misgendering. I don't think there's anything else, but if there is something I should mention, please tell me in the comments!</p><p>Also, semi-shameless self-plug, if you want to see whatever goes on in this chaotic head of mine, or want to discuss this story/universe, check out my Tumbr, @SML8180</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Janus stared at the note on the coffee table, just as the other teens and Roman did. His heart was pounding in his chest, and he became acutely aware of the tight material of his binder. Seeing the name he had been forced to hear daily for years, which he hadn’t spoken in ages, until he had uttered it that morning, made his skin crawl, and seeing Logan being misgendered didn’t help. The idea of his father doing something to Logan terrified him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What the </span>
  <em>
    <span>fuck</span>
  </em>
  <span>…” Virgil mumbled. “Your old man is </span>
  <em>
    <span>crazy</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Janus.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Your father’s involved with the Order?” Roman asked. When Janus didn’t respond, he took a slow breath. “Kid, I know this is scary as hell, but I </span>
  <em>
    <span>need</span>
  </em>
  <span> to know how your father is connected to them.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The bastard’s not just </span>
  <em>
    <span>connected</span>
  </em>
  <span> to the Order,” Virgil told Roman.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Viper</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Janus spoke the name in such a way that it practically dripped with venom and hatred.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How much time do we have?” Emile asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“One week,” Janus answered. “That meeting’s scheduled for October twenty-third.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s not much time,” Patton commented.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then we better work fast,” Roman stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We need to figure out where he’s leading us,” Emile chimed in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And how are we gonna do </span>
  <em>
    <span>that</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Virgil questioned. “It looks like it’s just random letters.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t think it’s random,” Patton mused.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You think it’s a code?” Roman asked, as he and the three teens looked towards Patton.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, I think so,” Patton replied. He pulled Logan’s bag towards himself and pulled out a pad of paper and a pen. He pulled out a couple of pages from the notepad, and drew a circle on one of them, writing the alphabet around the circle. After that was finished, he took the second page and drew a smaller circle, and carefully folded and tore the paper around the circle he’d drawn, so he was left with just the circle. He wrote the alphabet again, around the inside of the smaller circle, and took a paperclip out of his pocket, pushing it through the center of the two pieces of paper and folding it to keep them together. “The note said </span>
  <em>
    <span>We’ll start simple</span>
  </em>
  <span>, right? When it comes to codes, a Caesar Cipher is probably one of the easiest. We don’t have a shift key, but we can just keep shifting letter by letter until it starts to make sense.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re the one who knows how to do this, Pat,” Janus stated. “Ball’s in your court.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus watched as his cousin worked, copying down the random-looking letters from the note onto the notepad in front of him, and starting to turn one of the letter wheels in front of him. The cheerful boy became quiet and focused, and reminded Janus of the times where he’d gone to ask Logan a question, only to find them in their office working on something, their brow furrowed and the very tip of their tongue poking out from between their lips. He watched as Patton would get a few letters in, shake his head, and scratch out the letters he’d written, before moving down a line. After what had to be at least half an hour, Patton moved to a clean page, copied down the random-looking letters once again, and then wrote letters that looked much more purposeful under them. When he finally finished, he set the notepad down for the others to see.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Aqf Emab Idm</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Six West Ave</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Gwc pidm bpm smg</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>You have the key</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Rcab jm aczm</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Just be sure</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Bpib gwc izm vwb ammv</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>That you are not seen</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Okay, that’s cool,” Virgil praised.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Six West Ave? What’s there?” Emile questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s a pickup location,” Virgil answered. “That’s where a lot of us get whatever we’re supposed to be transporting. Everyone who runs from that point has a key to get in, because the place is supposed to be abandoned and locked up.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We can’t get caught going in there,” Patton pointed out. “Is it guarded or something?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There’s always someone hanging around, making sure nobody tries to pull any tricks,” Virgil told him. “But, the alley between Six West and Eight West is really narrow. I wouldn’t be surprised if someone managed to jump onto Six’s roof from the roof of Eight, considering it’s a little taller. Nobody bothers to watch that alley, so that’d be our best bet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, who’s gonna be the one jumping off a building?” Roman questioned. “That sounded kinda dark.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I could do it,” Emile volunteered. “But I’d need to know what I’m looking for in there.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Now </span>
  <em>
    <span>that</span>
  </em>
  <span> I can help with,” Roman smiled. The man stood up and made his way over to Logan’s desk. He rifled through the drawers for a few moments, before pulling out what he was looking for. “We can hook you up with a camera and an earpiece, so we’ll be able to see what you see, and we’ll be able to communicate back and forth. Janus and Virgil can direct you once you’re inside.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, when are we going to do this?” Patton questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’d say as soon as possible,” Janus suggested. “He said Logan and the others are safe </span>
  <em>
    <span>for now</span>
  </em>
  <span>, and we have no idea what he’s planning to do with them. For all we know, we only have a few days before the old bastard’s goons start getting antsy or he decides to do something.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Tonight’s our best bet,” Virgil chimed in. “There’s a meeting for those of us who run out of Six West, Janus can’t be seen, but I can’t be a no-show. There’ll be people there, but they’ll all be distracted.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then you’re gonna be Emile’s backup,” Roman told the purple-haired teen. “Janus, you’ll be in the car with me, keeping an eye on them through their cameras, and directing Emile on where he needs to go.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What about me?” Patton asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ll be here,” Roman told him. “We need someone to keep an eye on the feed. That’s a big part of Logan’s job; they make sure we can all see and hear each other, and acts as an extra set of eyes. There’s only so much I can keep track of, and I don’t have direct control over all the volume levels.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That sounds complicated,” the boy replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s simpler than it sounds,” the agent stated. “Come on, I’ll give you an idea of what you’ll be looking at,” he prompted, motioning for Patton to approach.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Roman sat down in the chair behind Logan’s desk as Patton approached. He pulled up the system he knew Logan used to keep track of their cameras and microphones, going through the process of getting everything set up. The cameras were blacked out, their windows showing a </span>
  <em>
    <span>No Signal</span>
  </em>
  <span> message, seeing as the devices were currently off.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This is usually how Logan has things set up,” he told the teen. He glanced up to see Patton watching him work over his shoulder. “We’ll put a hidden camera on Virgil, and a more standard one on Emile, since we don’t plan on him being seen. These sliders up here,” he stated, moving the cursor of Logan’s mouse over the sliders he was talking about, which ran across the top of the screen, “control the volume going to each of the earpieces, and the circuit clarity. Once the circuit sounds clear, it’s basically like managing a video call.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, this one makes sure everything sounds clear,” Patton repeated, pointing to one of the sliders, which was standing vertically at the bottom left corner of the screen. “And these ones control people’s volume?” he went on, indicating the other sliders. Two of the sliders were laying horizontally above the black camera windows, while three others were vertical and standing in a little tower on the right hand side of the screen.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yep,” Roman confirmed. “And you don’t need to worry about the cameras, so long as they’re on and you’ve got an image. We keep these fully charged, so the only way they’ll go out is if, y’know, they get shot, or something like that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s not so bad,” Patton smiled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How’s that all sound to you guys?” Roman asked, turning his seat towards the other three teens.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This is crazy…” Virgil stated, fidgeting with the string on his hoodie. The boy sounded more than a little nervous about the whole thing, which wasn’t a surprise. The way he was fidgeting with his hoodie string and the way he was chewing on his lip reminded Roman of how Remus would get when his mind was flooded by intrusive thoughts that they didn’t know how to handle.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why don’t we do a test of the cameras and earpieces and make sure they’ll be working? That way, if anything’s gonna fail, it’ll fail here, and not during the real thing,” Janus suggested.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil seemed to consider the blonde boy’s suggestion for a moment, before nodding, seeming to relax a tiny bit. “That sounds good,” he finally replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman couldn’t help but see a bit of himself and Remus in the two boys as he watched the interaction. Janus knew just how to read Virgil and put him at ease, just as he and Remus had learned to do for one another. Seeing as Emile and Patton hadn’t responded to Virgil’s anxiety as quickly as Janus had, it was clear that Janus had the closest bond with the boy. Roman knew he missed things sometimes, but he didn’t miss how Virgil slowed his breathing to match Janus’ breaths, or how Janus’ fingers lightly tapped out a slow count against Virgil’s arm.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ll set you guys up, then,” Roman stated, once Virgil seemed to have calmed down enough. “You’ll want to wear dark colors tonight, Emile. Think you have anything that’ll fit the bill?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Uh…” Emile paused, trying to remember what he had thrown into the bag he’d taken with him to Patton’s yesterday. “I might have a set of black pants, but I don’t think I packed any dark shirts.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ll have to grab something for you, then. There’s probably something in the closet in here that’ll fit you,” Roman mused. “For now, let’s get this on you, get it adjusted so it fits,” he dictated, pulling a chest harness out of the desk drawer. Emile stood and approached, and Roman helped the teen put on the harness, adjusting the straps so it fit the boy properly. “The camera hooks in right here,” Roman told him, picking up one of the cameras and clipping it into place in the center of Emile’s chest. “When you’re set, you wanna hit this button right here,” he dictated, showing Emile the power button. “Easy as that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman watched as Emile moved his arms around, checking his range of motion. “Feels pretty good, shouldn’t be too much of a problem,” he mused.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And for Count Woe-laf over there, we’ve got this one,” Roman went on, pulling out a bundle of wire that was connected to an earpiece and a small battery pack; the entire assembly was dark grey in color. “It’ll hook over your ear, and it shouldn’t stand out too bad in the low light, considering the color. Remus would use this one most of the time, on his left ear, so it was hidden by their hair. Didn’t usually have too much issue with it.” The agent took a few strides forward and handed Virgil the camera.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, what about the earpieces?” Emile asked, fidgeting with the harness a bit as Virgil stood and shrugged off his hoodie to get the camera on for the test.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got ‘em!” Patton cheerfully proclaimed, holding up the case that held the earpieces.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ve got three discreet ones, two bulkier ones that look like blue-tooth earpieces, and Logan’s headset,” Roman rattled off. “Virgil, Emile, you guys are gonna have two of the discreet ones, these just pop in like earbuds, they’ve got a little wedge that’ll keep them in. Patton, you can use Logan’s headset. Janus, you and I’ll use the bulkier earpieces, since we won’t be going inside,” he determined, passing out the different devices. “They’ve all got microphones built in, as long as the circuit is kept stable, the audio quality shouldn’t be too bad.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman helped the teens all get their earpieces in place, while Patton located Logan’s headset and put it on. He directed Emile and Virgil to go walk the hallway, and he’d direct them from there. Meanwhile, he grabbed his laptop and got everything pulled up properly for the test. Virgil and Emile left the office, and Roman helped Patton get everything tweaked properly. Once everything was set up for Patton, and Virgil and Emile were at the far end of the main hall on their current floor, Roman prompted Janus to follow him as he picked up his laptop, proceeding to lead the blonde teen out to another area of the building.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman brought Janus to a small lounge where there were a couple of agents chatting in the corner. He ushered the teen towards a bar-height round table with a couple of chairs by it, and they each took a seat.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay, Virgil, Emile, try turning your cameras on,” Roman prompted, adjusting the screen of his laptop so Janus could see it properly. After a moment, both camera windows had startup screens up. “Great.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Can you guys say something? Just like, a volume check?”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Patton’s voice came through, sounding a little garbled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Tweak the circuit, Cous, you’re sounding fuzzy,” Janus stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A moment later, Patton spoke up again, </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Is this any better?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Go a little further, Kid,” Roman told him.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“And now?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Crystal clear,” Janus smiled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay, now we can have Emile and Virgil check in,” Roman determined. “How’s everything on your end, boys?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Holy shit, you’re loud,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Virgil remarked.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Sorry, V,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Patton apologized, bringing the incoming volume on Virgil’s earpiece down.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Any better?” Roman asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Well, I’m not going deaf, so that’s probably a good thing,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Virgil replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Emile, how’s everything for you?” Janus questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I can’t hear you guys too well,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Emile told him. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“You’re clear, but too quiet.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“How’s this?”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Patton asked after a moment.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Okay, loud and clear,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Emile confirmed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Great, and we hear you guys just fine,” Roman stated. “Virgil, can you adjust your camera a bit? You’re pointing too high.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman and Janus watched the feed from Virgil’s camera, as the boy worked to adjust the camera over his ear. After a moment of fiddling with it, the view was much more centered at his eye level.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“This is so cool,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Patton mused.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This is nuts,” Janus chuckled. “This is absolutely crazy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Feels like a movie, huh?” Roman asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, kinda,” Janus replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s why we do it,” Roman told him. “We all wanted to do something that was crazy, that would do some good, and that’s what the Bureau’s about. We do good, and get a thrill from it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Adrenaline rush with a paycheck,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Virgil chimed in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Basically,” Roman laughed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Feeling any better about tonight, Virge?” Janus asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Yeah, now that I know everything’s working, I feel a little better,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> the boy replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Dear Virgil Morrison, this is gonna be a good night, and here’s why,” Janus jokingly recited.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“J, I swear to god.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Those letters are important, honey. They’re gonna help you build your confidence.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I hate you.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Love you, too, Sunshine.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Did you guys just reference </span>
  <em>
    <span>Dear Evan Hansen</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Roman questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Yes, yes they did,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Emile stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“They have their own language, and it happens to involve a lot of musical theater references,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Patton chimed in.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“To be fair, I do actually do that letter thing, and it does actually help,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Virgil admitted.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good to hear those’re helping,” Janus replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Line clear, kids,” Roman interjected. “Try to keep chatter to a minimum, in case something happens.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Got it,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Virgil confirmed. The other teens agreed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Emile, why is your camera upside down?” Janus partially groaned, trying not to sound amused.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“He’s standing on his hands,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Virgil told him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My god, he’s like Remus,” Roman chuckled.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“There’s more space out here to do it! I didn’t wanna kick anyone,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Emile stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You know how to execute a safety roll, right?” Janus asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Of course! I’ve done dance for years, and I go to a parkour gym every Tuesday and Saturday,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Emile confirmed.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Emile’s basically a walking ball of muscle,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Patton chimed in. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“He can pick me up easily, it’s pretty cool! And kinda scary.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Emile’s laugh came through the feed, and it got the others laughing, as well. After the group ran through a few more things, which involved Emile finding a set of stairs that wasn’t too busy and had plenty of space, he got a running start towards and jumped over, rolling when he landed on the floor at the base of the steps. He explained that he wanted to be sure he could pull the maneuver with the harness on. The boy met back up with Virgil, and the pair made their way back towards Logan’s office. Meanwhile, Janus and Roman stood from their seats and also went back to the office. In the office, the cameras and earpieces were set aside, their batteries set to charge back up so they wouldn’t run the risk of dying later, and Roman helped Emile find some dark clothes that fit him well enough to serve their purpose for the mission at hand.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman and the teens all hung around the office, with Roman getting some written work done, and the four teens all doing their own thing, mostly chatting with one another, joking around and talking shit about teachers at school. Apparently Janus’ History teacher had recently had a baby, leaving the class with a long-term substitute who was apparently </span>
  <em>
    <span>struggling</span>
  </em>
  <span> to remember some students’ names and pronouns, including Janus’ own, and he’d been calling the woman out on these supposed </span>
  <em>
    <span>mistakes</span>
  </em>
  <span> for roughly two weeks. Virgil offered to knock some sense into the woman, while Patton and Emile offered to act as mediators. Janus turned the offers down, stating that he and several of his classmates had a plan to get the message through her head that they weren’t going to take her ignorance lying down. Roman was tempted to ask what the plan was, but decided that was going to be between Janus, his classmates, and the substitute.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Emile took a few deep breaths as he sat in the backseat of Roman’s car with Virgil. Janus was in the front passenger seat, while Roman drove, and Patton was back in Logan’s office. He adjusted the harness over his chest, and made sure his camera was secure and on, before looking towards Virgil. The other teen was adjusting his hoodie and mask to hide the wire to his camera. Patton had put up a fuss when he saw the pattern on Virgil’s hoodie, which was when Virgil learned about Patton’s aversion to spiders, even if they were only a cartoon-y pattern on a hoodie. Virgil had promised that he’d have the hoodie and mask off by the time they got back, and wouldn’t wear them around Patton, which seemed to quell Patton’s fears for the most part.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Now, they were pulling into a spot by Eight West Ave, where Emile would be stationed until Virgil gave the word that things were clear. Emile took a breath, pulling on the dark grey gloves he’d borrowed from Roman, who claimed they belonged to Remus. The gloves were mostly made of a material that Emile couldn’t name, but it had a bit of stretch to it, which led the gloves to fit him fairly well despite the fact Remus had larger hands than him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ll have about an hour to do this,” Virgil stated, his voice just slightly muffled by the thin material of his mask. “Maybe an hour and a half, if things run long.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ll lean towards the hour,” Roman determined. “Always lean towards having a shorter time frame, so you won’t be caught off guard.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We should’ve done that when we got my stuff out of the old man’s place,” Janus mused.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That was close. Thank god for Patton’s driving,” Virgil chuckled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Janus and I’ll be here in the car, ready for when you guys are set. If anything goes wrong, signal us, and I’ll do what I can to get you guys out,” Roman told the two camera-wearing teens.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“You’ve got this, guys,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Patton chimed in over their headsets. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“I can’t do much from here, but you have my support.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, Patton,” Emile replied, smiling a bit to himself. “I should probably get going, gotta find a way up there.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m pretty sure there’s a fire escape in the alley between the buildings,” Virgil told him. “I usually hide my bike there during these meetings.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll try that first, then,” Emile nodded. “Only thing to do now is start the clock.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>With that, he and Virgil got out of the car, making their way down the sidewalk. They had one shot to get this right, and one hour to do it in. Easy peasy, right?</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. One Hour</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Quick heads up for this chapter! This chapter includes mentions of stabbing and knives throughout the second half, as well as mentions of fights, and spitting in people's eyes. Just wanted to let you all know about that, I don't think there's much else.</p><p>Also! For the month of December, I'll be doing daily uploads on top of the usual uploads I've been doing. So, double uploads on Wednesdays! Keep an eye out for those little oneshots going up, because some will be taking place in this universe.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Emile had Virgil’s help reaching the first level of the fire escape connected to Eight West Ave. He’d climbed onto the other boy’s shoulders, and he’d given Emile enough of a boost to allow him to grab the bottom platform and hoist himself up. From there, Virgil made his way towards the door he was supposed to go through to enter the building, while Emile did his best to climb the steps of the fire escape as quickly and quietly as he could.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He stood on the roof of the building, catching his breath. He took in the scenery around him, which was mostly abandoned buildings, along with some street lights that were clearly about to die any day, now. He could see the edge of the rooftop of Six West Ave, which wasn’t far below him. This wouldn’t be a pleasant jump; the surface of the roof was littered with pebbles and such, and concrete didn’t exactly have much give to it, factors which would certainly lead to a few scrapes and bruises, even if Emile rolled perfectly. There wasn’t time to worry about potential injury now, though, he had a job to do.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It felt like ages before Virgil spoke up in his earpiece, his voice hushed but still clear thanks to Patton’s work balancing the volume levels. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Everyone’s distracted, Em. Better get going.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got it,” Emile quietly replied, backing away from the edge of the roof. He got a running start, and leapt from the roof of Eight West Ave. He let out a quiet grunt as his feet made contact with the surface of the lower rooftop and he rolled. The boy stood, dusting himself off and checking for any injuries. He found he did have a few scrapes, and he’d certainly have a bruise or two, but there wasn’t much damage done. “Step one complete, I’m on the roof.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Good, there should be a door up there. It’s shut, but the lock’s busted, so it should open. Be careful, though, it could squeak,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Virgil told him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll keep that in mind,” Emile responded, making his way over to the door Virgil had indicated. He applied a bit of upward pressure to the doorknob as he opened the door, and thankfully it didn’t squeak much. It certainly wouldn’t be noticed down on the first floor where Virgil had claimed the meeting was being held. “I’m in, where do I go from here?” Emile whispered, hoping the microphone would be able to pick up his voice.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Patton, can you turn them up a bit?”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Emile heard Janus ask. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Both of them are a little low.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Got it, should be all set,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Patton replied after a moment.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Asking again, where do I go from here?” Emile questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Get to the bottom of the rooftop access stairs, and you’ll be on the sixth floor of the building,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Janus told him. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“From there, you’ll need to find a way down to the fifth floor. Viper usually keeps stuff like copies of records, assorted valuable assets, and occasionally prisoners on the fifth and fourth floors. I’m not sure which floor whatever we’re looking for is going to be on.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Only one way to find out,” Emile replied. He began walking down the steps that led to the roof, and found the door that would let him get down to the fifth floor fairly easily, keeping an eye out for anyone who might try to stop him as he went.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As he made his way around the fifth floor of the building, Emile could hear bits and pieces of the meeting going on below him coming through Virgil’s end of the feed. He tried not to listen too closely, though, not wanting to get distracted. Emile checked the doorknobs on the fifth floor, and found most of them locked. He used a card Roman had given him to get into some of these locked rooms, though only after listening at the door to ensure there was nobody inside who would give him away. The teen sifted through the contents of some of these rooms, but found nothing. He didn’t even know what he was looking for, at this point; Janus had simply said that he’d know what they were looking for when he saw it, and Emile could only trust his word.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>After not finding what the group was looking for on the fifth floor of the building, Janus directed him down to the fourth. Emile found less rooms on this floor, and made quick work of gaining access, rifling through the contents, and moving on to the next. He had just entered the fifth or sixth room on the fourth floor and took in its contents.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“There’s a safe in the far corner of this room, Emile,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Janus told him through his earpiece. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“We might find whatever we’re looking for in there.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got it,” Emile whispered, making his way towards the safe that he could just barely see in the dark and cluttered room. He knelt on the floor in front of the safe, looking at the dial. “Do you know the combination?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I think it’s seven, twenty-seven, eighty-one.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Emile turned the dial on the safe, inputting the sequence Janus told him. He tried the handle, and he bit his lip as it turned, allowing him to ever so carefully open the door. Inside the safe, Emile found a handful of files, a couple of old-looking handguns, cash, and a locked black box with gold accents on it. The box clearly hadn’t been in there as long as long as everything else, it looked far too new.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“That has to be it. That wasn’t in there the last time I was at Six West,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Janus told him. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Be careful, Emile. You don’t know what could be in that thing.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Noted,” Emile replied, carefully picking up the box. It had some weight to it, and was heavier than it looked. He set the box on his knee as he carefully shut the door of the safe and reset the dial to zero, just as he’d found it.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Fuck,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Virgil could be heard quietly cursing over the line. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Emile, grab the goods and get off the fourth floor. Things’re wrapping up, you’ve got five, maybe six guys on their way up right now.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“What about you?” the boy questioned, standing up with the box in his hands.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Just go, I’ll try to slow them down.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Be careful, Virgil,” Emile requested, before tucking the box under his arm and starting to make his way out of the room, carefully closing the door behind him as he checked the hall.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Emile could hear Virgil talking to some people through his earpiece, but his heart was beating too hard for him to catch what was being said. He approached the door he had originally come through, only to find it stuck. He cursed under his breath, and started to search for a different way off the floor. The teen couldn’t find another way up to the fifth floor, and the fourth floor level of Six West’s fire escape was in such bad shape it would likely break under his weight; the window was covered by wood, anyways, with just a small gap Emile could see through. His only option would be to go </span>
  <em>
    <span>down</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I have to go to the third floor,” Emile sharply whispered into his mic. “There’s no way back up to five, the door’s jammed.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Go down the hallway to your left,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Janus directed. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“You’ll find stairwell B, that should lead you down to the third floor. Virgil, you might need to cause a scene if those guys don’t stop heading towards the stairs. Emile’s gonna need an opening.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Do not tell me you want me to start a fight in here, you know as well as I do that like, ninety percent of these guys are armed,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Virgil replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“It’s a risk we have to take, V. Otherwise Emile’s trapped and you’ll both be busted.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil sighed, </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Fine. Emile, if you can get to the second floor without being spotted, exit the stairwell there. You’ll be on the catwalks above the meeting. From there, you’re gonna have to help me start this thing.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“How am I gonna do that?” Emile questioned, making his way down the steps of stairwell B.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“There’s like, broken bricks and bottles and stuff up there, just throw a couple down onto the crowd, maybe?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Virgil, that is a fucking stupid plan, he could hit you,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Janus argued.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“You got anything better?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Do you have your knife with you?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I’m not gonna stab someone, D.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“What if you-”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“The hell? Spider, you got some kinda wire on ya?”</span>
  </em>
  <span> a new voice joined the mix from Virgil’s line. The voice was rough and deep, and clearly displeased.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Janus watched the feed coming from Virgil’s camera, his breath hitching as he was approached by a man who could only be described as a brick wall. He was tall and wide, clearly with a good amount of muscle. The man had gotten close enough to the teen to notice his camera, and grabbed the front of Virgil’s hoodie.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shit, Virgil, if there’s ever been a time to do something crazy, it’s now,” Janus told Virgil, keeping his voice level.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He and Roman could only watch as Virgil’s camera shook as the man grabbing him pulled him along by his hoodie, and a thud and grunt from Virgil told them he’d likely been forced against the wall. They saw one of Virgil’s hands come up and grip the brute’s shirt, and a curse from the man told them </span>
  <em>
    <span>something</span>
  </em>
  <span> had happened, though they couldn’t tell just what. Virgil’s other hand came into frame, holding a pocket knife with the blade flipped into place. The man still hadn’t let go of the teen, and so Virgil proceeded to drive the knife into his arm, which forced him to drop the boy.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Emile, forget Virgil’s plan,” Janus quickly said into his mic. “Just get all the way down to the ground level and </span>
  <em>
    <span>get out of there</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“You don’t have to tell me twice,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Emile replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus watched the camera feeds in front of him, crossing his fingers as he watched people’s forms speed by Virgil as he ran, occasionally being jostled by those around him who tried to halt his progress, only to be met by Virgil’s blade to distract them. Meanwhile, Emile was quickly making his way down the stairs, and burst through a door in the midst of the chaos that was ensuing. He didn’t even seem to spot Virgil as he ran over, grabbing Emile’s arm and pulling him towards the exit.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As everything unfolded on the laptop Janus had on his lap, Roman got the car started and in gear. He reached back and threw open the back door on the passenger side. Not even thirty seconds later, Emile and Virgil had jumped in, and Roman began to drive as Virgil pulled the door shut, while he and Emile tried to catch their breath.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Are you guys okay?”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Patton questioned, sounding concerned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Some scrapes and bruises, but I’m alright,” Emile replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“One of those assholes had a knife and cut me,” Virgil admitted, gripping his left arm. “Other than that, I think I’m okay.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ll get that checked out back at the office,” Roman stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“That did </span>
  </em>
  <b>
    <em>not</em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span> feel like an hour,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Patton observed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fifty-seven minutes,” Janus told him.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Still. That felt so much longer, right until everything went crazy, then it felt like, a few </span>
  </em>
  <b>
    <em>seconds</em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span>!”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s how this job is,” Roman chuckled. “Things feel like they take forever, then </span>
  <em>
    <span>bam</span>
  </em>
  <span>, you’ve got like three dudes coming at you, you’re stabbing one, kicking a second, and spitting in a third guy’s eye.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is that a thing you’ve actually done?” Janus questioned, raising an eyebrow.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not me,” Roman told him. “Remus once had a similar situation, minus the third guy. I </span>
  <em>
    <span>think</span>
  </em>
  <span> Logan’s pulled that last move a couple times.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Cenn’s spat in a guy’s eye before?”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Patton asked, seeming equal parts fascinated and surprised, stifling his surprised giggles.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“At least once,” Roman confirmed. “Don’t tell them I told you that, though. They made us all swear not to bring it up.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Now that sounds like Cenn.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’re on our way back, Pat. There should be a first aid kit in one of the drawers of Logan’s desk.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“I’ll have everything set for when you guys get back.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, Patton,” Virgil chimed in.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Just keep pressure on that cut, Virgil.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Believe me, I didn’t plan on letting go in the first place.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus couldn’t help but chuckle a bit, listening to the conversation. He took a few slow breaths, knowing that he’d be paying the price for wearing his binder this long once they got back. Virgil was sure to lecture him, at the very least. He’d change when they got back, that’s all. Given, now that he saw just how much can happen in one hour, maybe he’d try a bit harder to avoid these extended periods, just in case.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0016"><h2>16. Attempts Were Made</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Quick heads up for this chapter!</p><p>This chapter includes a moment where Remus pulls a Remus and makes a semi-sexual joke (nothing really explicit, though), discussion of semi-questionable parenting decisions made by Logan (nothing bad; just the fact that they taught their son to pick locks), questionable Uncle-ing from Remy (seeing as he taught Patton how to shoot a gun), descriptions of injuries (nothing crazy detailed, but it's worth a mention), and implications of a bomb right at the end.</p><p>I'll do an extra note at the end if anyone wants to skip over this chapter. Personally, I really enjoy the dialogue I was able to include, but if any of the above would be really uncomfortable for anyone reading, then I totally understand skipping over it.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Logan had no idea how much time had passed since they were taken Friday night. With no windows or clocks in the room they were being kept in, they had no way of keeping track of time, especially knowing they had been unconscious for several hours at least. Remy and Remus didn’t know much more than Logan did; they had both been at home, when suddenly several intruders entered, and after a struggle, they were both knocked out and hauled away.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I hope the kids are doing better than we are,” Remy mused.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So long as Patton managed to get my phone, he’ll have all the information he needs,” Logan told him. “He knows a lot, I made sure of that. As did </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Remy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Gurl, I have </span>
  <em>
    <span>no</span>
  </em>
  <span> idea what you’re talking about.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m well aware of those </span>
  <em>
    <span>ice cream</span>
  </em>
  <span> trips you would take Patton on.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“To be fair, we </span>
  <em>
    <span>did</span>
  </em>
  <span> get ice cream after,” Remus chimed in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You were in on it, too?” Logan could only just keep themselves from shouting. “Is it fair to assume that I was the </span>
  <em>
    <span>only</span>
  </em>
  <span> one to not be told this was happening?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Roman didn’t know, either. You weren’t the only one, Specs,” Remy told them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“At least he knows how to handle himself,” Logan sighed. “For now, we need a plan.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Anyone got a bobby pin?” Remy asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There might still be some in my hair,” Remus told him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do the thing then, babe.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan craned their neck to watch over their shoulder as Remus twisted his body to get their head close enough to either Remy’s hands or their own in order to get a bobby pin out of his hair. After a couple of attempts, Remy had managed to pull a pair of pins out of Remus’ hair, though not without pulling out a handful of strands in the process.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, harder, Daddy~” Remus joked, seemingly unbothered by the fact he just had hair pulled from their head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Save the bedroom talk, Remus,” Logan told them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If you wanna get me in bed, Teach, all you gotta do is ask,” Remus replied with a smirk.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan couldn’t help but sputter a bit. They had never confessed their attraction to Remus to anyone, let alone </span>
  <em>
    <span>Remus himself</span>
  </em>
  <span>. For now, they wanted to keep it that way. At least until they were all out of immediate danger. They listened to Remy and Remus attempting to pick the locks on the handcuffs that bound their wrists, and ignored the temptation to tug at their own restraints, knowing it would do more harm than good.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Finally, a very faint </span>
  <em>
    <span>click</span>
  </em>
  <span> sounded off behind Logan, and they craned their neck to see which of their companions had freed themselves. They caught Remus stretching their arms over their head, before bringing their hands forward to pick the lock on the second cuff. Once the handcuffs were off, Remus made quick work of the rope binding his ankles, and stood, bending back a bit and causing a series of pops to fill the room.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Get Lo’s cuffs off, I think I’ve almost got this,” Remy told them. “Just a little rusty on double-lock cuffs.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Patton could get out of those faster, Remy,” Logan told him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wait, you taught your kid how to get out of double-lock handcuffs?” Remus questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He was interested in how locks worked as a child, so I taught him how to pick basic locks. As he got older, I taught him how to get through more complex locks,” they stated. “So, in short, yes, I taught Patton how to get out of double-lock handcuffs. It’s a useful skill.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fine, a seventeen year old could </span>
  <em>
    <span>probably</span>
  </em>
  <span> get out of these faster,” Remy admitted. “But, in my defense, I’m pretty sure the assholes who took me broke my wrist, which doesn’t exactly help.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You didn’t think to tell us that </span>
  <em>
    <span>earlier</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Remus challenged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You were </span>
  <em>
    <span>unconscious</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Remy countered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Now children, play nice,” Logan deadpanned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A few beats went by as Remus attempted to pick the lock on Logan’s cuffs, before the silence was broken by chatter at the door.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Freedom, bitches,” Remy whispered, hurrying to undo the second cuff on his wrist, which he managed easily now that he could bring his hands to his front and see what he was doing. The knot in the rope at his ankles was undone in record time, and he stood, moving to help Remus free Logan. As the pair worked, they heard the lock on the door being undone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There’s no time for you two to free me,” Logan hurriedly told the pair. “I’ll find a way out, you two need to take the chance and rush that door once they open it. It sounds like one person, they won’t be able to stop both of you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What about you?” Remus questioned, worry creeping into their voice.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll figure something out, just go,” Logan told him. “We’ll meet up later, I promise.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What are you up to in here?!” a voice shouted from the doorway. Logan watched as the blurry forms of Remy and Remus ran at the door. The dim lighting did nothing to help them figure out exactly what was happening in the blurry mass they could see. They could hear heavy footfalls heading away from the door, and the obvious sounds of a fight, before the door slammed and they heard handcuffs being fastened once again. After that, the door opened and shut once again, and the lock was engaged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Several long moments of silence went by, and Logan was faintly aware of quiet wheezing behind them. They couldn’t tell who had made it out, but they knew they weren’t alone.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Remus ignored the pain that made itself known with every step they took. He kept a quick pace, not looking back as he ran. Thankfully, there had only been one person on the other side of that door. They had originally tried to block the doorway, but Remy had thrown a punch, knocking them off balance just long enough for Remus to slip by. Remy had kept the opposition distracted, while Remus ran.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They found their way out of the building without much issue, and hopped the fence despite their body’s protests. The sun was just rising as they continued to run, hoping to find the main road, a landmark he’d pinned in his memory, </span>
  <em>
    <span>something</span>
  </em>
  <span> to tell him where the fuck he was. They kept up a pace which made their lungs burn, though thankfully the adrenaline rush the entire situation had brought them was keeping most of their pain at bay for right now.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The main road still had many street lights running, though they were slowly going out as the sunlight grew brighter. Remus hardly slowed his pace as he made his way down the now-familiar route. They could feel the adrenaline ebbing away, leading to the pain of their injuries to become more obvious. He had no idea how long it took him to get to the Bureau’s building, he only knew that the sun was very much up, and the day was starting for many. They entered the building, not caring about their lack of access card; it was easy enough for a well-respected agent like themself to get in and out without it. Remus made his way to the elevator, pressing the button that would bring him to the floor Logan’s office was on, and simply waited. When the elevator stopped, Remus stumbled out, biting their tongue against the pain that was now threatening to take them down with every step they took towards the office.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Last night hadn’t been easy for Roman and the four teens he was keeping an eye on. They had managed to get the box they’d been looking for, but Virgil and Emile both came back injured. Patton had taken care of the pair, while Janus had gotten changed in the bathroom just down the hall from the office. Roman had contacted another agent who owed him a favor to come help, and they had brought some snacks and drinks for the boys, and they had all fallen asleep in Logan’s office, being too tired to bother trying to head somewhere else.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Right now, Roman was up, having been woken up by his usual alarm, which he’d quickly turned off, letting out a quiet sigh when the only teen who’d stirred was Virgil, who’d simply cuddled closer to Janus and settled back down. Roman had gone about most of his usual routine, heading down the block to get breakfast for himself and the teens for when they woke up, using the walk as his brief workout for the day, and used the facilities the Bureau offered to agents to clean up. He even brought the bags the four teenagers had in his car up to Logan’s office, setting them in the corner. With all that done, he found himself simply sitting at Logan’s desk, double-checking the report he’d written up concerning what had happened last night.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Suddenly, the agent heard shuffling in the hallway, and before he could get up to investigate, the office door opened, and his twin stumbled in, leaning against the doorframe for support.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remus looked like </span>
  <em>
    <span>shit</span>
  </em>
  <span>, if Roman were being honest. Their hair was tangled and matted with blood, some of the pieces of hair that were bleached and had been dyed green were stained red. He had dried blood on his skin, mostly on his arms and face, and his clothes were ripped and bloodied. He had bruises on his arms, and his knuckles were scraped to hell. They were breathing heavily, and stepping tenderly on their right leg. When Remus finally looked up and saw Roman, who was now standing and stepping towards them, he lunged for the more able-bodied twin, clinging to him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Holy shit,” Roman huffed, stumbling a bit at the force behind his twin’s movements. “Oh my god… You’re okay, Sib, I got you,” he mumbled, holding his brother tight. After several long moments, he got his brother to sit in Logan’s desk chair, so he could look them over.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What day is it…?” Remus asked, leaning back in the chair, allowing Roman to do whatever he wanted.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Uh, Sunday, I think,” Roman told them. “How did you </span>
  <em>
    <span>get</span>
  </em>
  <span> here?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ran… Picked the cuffs, Remy and I rushed the door,” Remus answered. “They got Remy… And Logan… </span>
  <em>
    <span>Fuck, they still have Logan</span>
  </em>
  <span>!” as the situation fully registered, Remus attempted to get up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, hey, easy,” Roman urged, setting his hands on Remus’ shoulders to keep his twin from standing. “You’re in rough shape as it is, I am </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> letting you do anything stupid, right now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s happening…?” a tired voice questioned. The twins looked over to see Patton sitting up on the folding cot he’d been sleeping on. He rubbed his eyes, blinking tiredly and squinting in the direction of the two adults. Patton wasn’t the only teen to have been woken up, as Virgil and Janus both stirred, as well, sitting up and rubbing their eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And so they wake,” Roman narrated. “Except for one,” he added, looking towards Emile.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’re a heavy sleeper,” Patton told him, reaching for his glasses.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yo, Emile,” Virgil mumbled, throwing a pillow at the sleeping teen. Emile hardly reacted, simply groaning and turning over, hugging the pillow.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Get up, Em,” Janus stated, throwing his own pillow at Emile, hitting the other teen right in the face. That still didn’t pull much of a reaction.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Emi, get your butt out of bed,” Patton urged, throwing a third pillow at his friend, using a bit more force than the other two. Emile finally stirred, ruffling their hair and sitting up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You guys’re dicks,” they muttered. “Your pillows are mine, now,” they determined, piling up the pillows and curling around them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey!” Patton protested. “Give ‘em back!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nope, mine, now,” Emile told him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Screw you,” Virgil chuckled. Emile’s only reply was to flip the other teen the bird, which resulted in the group falling into a fit of tired giggles.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I picked up breakfast for you guys,” Roman informed them, once the teenagers had all settled down.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, Roman!” Patton smiled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The teens all got up -with Janus, Virgil, and Patton stealing their pillows back from Emile-, and picked out food from the selection Roman had gotten them. Everything had been kept in a couple of insulated bags, which had kept things either warm or cold, depending on how each item had started out. Roman ensured Remus also got something to eat, as he tended to his twin’s injuries.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I feel like I know him from somewhere,” Virgil’s voice just met Roman’s ears as he looked over some of the cuts and bruises that littered his sibling.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Almost didn’t recognize ya without the mask, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Spider</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Remus said, looking towards the teens.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Holy shit, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Beetlejuice</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Virgil questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Beetlejuice?” Janus asked, looking between Virgil and Remus in confusion.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Beetlejuice,” Virgil confirmed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh fuck, we said it three times.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The group of teenagers burst into laughter for a moment, before Patton spoke up. “You guys know each other?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Long story, Watson,” Remus replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ll sort </span>
  <em>
    <span>that</span>
  </em>
  <span> out, later,” Roman interjected. “For now, Re, you gotta get cleaned up, we’ll wrap these, and go from there,” he determined. “Take my backpack, they’re my clothes, but at least they’ll fit you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You got it, Bro,” Remus replied, getting up and grabbing Roman’s backpack from beside the desk. They made their way out of the office, limping a bit as they went.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, we’ve got a useful addition to the team,” Roman mused, leaning against the desk.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do you mean? He’s beat to hell,” Janus pointed out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Because I know for a </span>
  <em>
    <span>fact</span>
  </em>
  <span>, that Remus would literally </span>
  <em>
    <span>kill</span>
  </em>
  <span> to get Logan back safe and sound. They love that nerd, they just won’t confess it,” Roman countered. “We’ve basically got a force of nature on our side.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“In the meantime,” Emile piped up, “we should start trying to open up that box from last night.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, good idea, kid,” Roman agreed.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Patton sat with Roman and Remus, while Virgil, Janus, and Emile got cleaned up and dressed. The three sat by the coffee table, with Roman and Patton on the floor, and Remus on the sofa, dressed in a set of Roman’s jeans and a white T-shirt with red sleeves, their right leg propped up with a couple of pillows. Patton had opted to let the others pull themselves together, while he started to figure out how to get into the box Emile had found. He mostly wanted the others to feel more comfortable while changing, though he also had opted to go about it later in order to keep the others from seeing that he had decided to wear the shoulder holster he’d found under Logan’s hoodie. He didn’t mind them knowing that he was able to shoot, but he didn’t want to concern them by having them see him actually carry a gun.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think I’ll be able to shim this first one without too much issue,” he mused, looking over the first lock. It was a small padlock, like you’d find on a diary, which Patton </span>
  <em>
    <span>knew</span>
  </em>
  <span> how to pick, but he’d always found the small ones to be a pain. Shimming the lock would be a bit easier, if he could find something small enough to use.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We could probably cut a piece off this,” Remus suggested, holding up the can in their hand. Roman had pulled the energy drink out of the small stash in Logan’s desk, and though it wasn’t cold, Remus hadn’t cared; he didn’t have his medication on hand, so the energy drink would have to do for the day.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’d be perfect,” Patton smiled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We have no idea what could be beyond that lock. For all we know, this thing could blow up on us,” Roman pointed out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s why I’m not looking to cut anything. If this thing’s rigged, then </span>
  <em>
    <span>that</span>
  </em>
  <span> would certainly set it off,” Patton told him. “We’ll have to solve or pick any lock we find on this, if we don’t, nothing good’ll come out of it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There’s no denying you’re Logan’s kid,” Remus chuckled. “I hope they’re okay…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Cenn’s strong… They’ll manage,” Patton replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He looked up when the other three teens walked into the room. Virgil was wearing a black T-shirt and torn dark-wash jeans, Janus had on a blue T-shirt with pink and white stars dotting the left arm and shoulder and a set of black jeans, and Emile had on a mint green and white checkered tunic-style top and a set of light-wash skinny jeans, with her pink bracelet on her wrist.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, any ideas on how to get into this thing?” Virgil asked, taking a seat to Patton’s left, pulling Janus down with him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m gonna try to shim the first lock open, and we’ll see from there,” Patton told him. “We can’t risk cutting or otherwise damaging the locks, because it could set something off inside and destroy the box, and hurt us in the process.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sounds like a good place to start,” Janus confirmed. “Get cleaned up, and we’ll get this thing started.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton nodded, grabbing his bag and going to clean up. He let out a sigh when the warm water from the shower hit his skin, but didn’t linger for too long. He cleaned himself up, dried off, and got dressed, pulling the shoulder holster out of his bag and putting it on over his shirt, setting the gun in its place with the safety on and the ammunition where it was supposed to be at his other side, just to be sure there was no way the firearm could go off. He pulled Logan’s hoodie on over the holster, adjusting it so that everything was hidden, before walking out, shouldering his bag and throwing his lanyard on over his head as he went.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Alright, let’s get this started,” Patton cheerfully prompted, setting his bag down and taking a seat in the same spot he’d been in earlier. Remus handed Patton the can from their energy drink, which Roman had washed out while Patton had been in the shower. “Hey Janus, could I borrow your knife?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course,” Janus replied, pulling his pocket knife out of the back pocket of his jeans and handing it to his cousin.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton took the knife and began cutting the can apart, taking care not to cut himself in the process. He cut a small piece from the can and cut a couple pieces out of one edge, before starting to fold the metal over itself. He used the dull edge of Janus’ knife to make sure the folds were secure, and then to shape the metal the way he needed it. He repeated this process and made himself a second shim, just to be safe, and handed the knife back over to his cousin. From there, he took one of the shims and slipped it into the gap between the shackle and the locking mechanism, and began to move the shim from side to side, attempting to disengage the lock. After several moments of this not working, Patton cursed under his breath and grabbed his second shim, slipping it into the second gap that didn’t yet have one, and repeated the process, working the shims until there was a soft click.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There we go,” the teen smirked, tugging the body of the lock and twisting it, which allowed the lock to be removed. He set the lock aside, and ever so slowly began to open the hinged lid of the box, hardly daring to breathe as he did so.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Shit</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Patton couldn’t help but curse as he opened the hinged lid of the box in front of him, letting the full box lay open.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Kids, get back,” Roman ordered. His tone left no room for anyone to question him, though Patton knew that neither he nor any of the others were dumb enough to argue. The four teens simply stood and moved away from the coffee table, quickly and wordlessly, and watched as Roman moved to the spot where Janus and Virgil had been sitting to Patton’s left, and Remus lowered themselves to the floor to sit across from Roman. “Been a minute since we last did this, huh, Re?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remus laughed, the sound bordering on being a cackle, “No kidding. Looks like the Disarming Duo is back in action.”</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Chapter Overview:</p><p>Logan, Remy, and Remus attempt an escape from where they are being held by their captors. Remus and Remy are able to get out of their restraints, though Logan is not. After a short struggle, Remus manages to escape and make their way back to SBIS headquarters and reunite with Roman and the teens. They are injured, but safe.</p><p>Meanwhile, Roman had spent the night in Logan's office with the four teens. The four teens wake up after Remus arrives and Roman begins to check him over. Everyone gets cleaned up and has some breakfast, before Patton starts to try to get into the box that the group acquired the night before. Patton gets the initial lock off the box and is able to open it up, revealing that there is a sort of bomb inside. Roman and Remus tell the kids to get back, and determine that they will have to disarm the device.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0017"><h2>17. Time is Ticking</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Quick heads up for this chapter!</p><p>The following chapter includes scenes of the bomb from the previous chapter being disarmed (that's basically throughout this entire chapter, it's not accurate to real life methods, but I'm just giving you all a heads up just in case), and another note in which Janus and Logan are misgendered and Janus is dead-named by his father (once again, this is book-ended by sets of 3 asterisks if you want to skip over it).</p><p>There will be a chapter overview at the end in another note if you wish to skip over this chapter for any of the above reasons.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“It’s a fucking </span>
  <em>
    <span>bomb</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Virgil sputtered, keeping close to Janus’ side.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re not the one who was </span>
  <em>
    <span>carrying it</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Emile pointed out, attempting to get her hands to stop shaking.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton found he couldn’t say anything. Three of the closest people to him, as well as the only person who could help find Logan at that point had all been in a car with a bomb, and if any number of things had gone wrong, he would’ve lost them all, and been unable to do </span>
  <em>
    <span>anything</span>
  </em>
  <span> besides </span>
  <em>
    <span>watch</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>“Could one of you grab the kit out of Logan’s desk?” Roman requested, looking towards the shaken teenagers. “Black, red, and green case, should be on the left hand side, second drawer down.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He watched as Patton silently grabbed the kit he was talking about and brought it over. The man nodded his thanks and let the boy simply back away. He was glad they were keeping their distance; he and Remus had little way of telling just how much damage the device between them could do. Roman handed Remus a pencil and small notepad from the kit and set the rest of the tools aside.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m seeing two sets of wires, one keypad, one five-letter combination, one six-letter combination,” Roman rattled off, examining the device closely. As he spoke, Remus wrote down what he said. He read off the letters on the dials for the combination locks, and his twin wrote them down in lines.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Should we deal with the wires first?” Remus suggested, looking across the table to Roman.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Probably. You were always better with the wires, if you take those, I’ll try to figure out the letter codes, and then we’ll work together on the keypad,” Roman dictated. Remus nodded, passing the notepad and a red pen over to Roman, before grabbing a set of wire cutters from the case that lay next to the bomb.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman looked at the letters on the page in front of him, deciding to focus on the five-letter combination first. Remus’ green lettering was surprisingly neat to everyone but the twins; Remus worked quickly, and their own notes would be messy more often than not, but if someone else had to read whatever they were writing, they were more careful, making sure everything was legible.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>O-S-V-E-L / R-W-E-T-I / N-U-S-J-A / M-G-P-A-O / W-C-R-M-T</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Roman was surprisingly good when it came to word puzzles. Scrambled letters hardly gave him issues, and the choice of letters in the set before him didn’t make it too difficult to narrow down the possible combination.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>V / E / N / O / M</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The agent circled his final result, and moved on to the next arrangement of letters.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>D-N-E-A-L-I / C-E-U-R-S-D / P-F-M-K-C-U / L-R-E-C-O-M / R-S-I-V-P-E / B-D-L-N-S-T</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Roman glanced up from the letters in front of him to check on Remus. His sibling had already finished working on one set of wires, and was figuring out the second, their brow furrowed in concentration. Seeing that they were doing just fine, he turned back to his work. A handful of words stood out within the sets of letters from the dials, and Roman couldn’t help but write them down to keep himself from focusing on them.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>D-E-N-I-A-L</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>C-U-R-S-E-D</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>V-I-P-E-R-S</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>With the words he was spotting out on the page, Roman knew these had to be custom locks. There was no way this number of specific words could have all ended up on the dials without that being the case. He didn’t bring it up, though; this wasn’t the time. Instead, he started playing around with the letters, eventually finding something that seemed promising.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>D / E / C / I / E / T</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Got it!” both twins exclaimed at the same time. They looked towards one another, and Roman found that Remus had finished working on the two wire modules. The small lights indicating their activity had gone out, telling them that they were now inactive and safe.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got those combinations?” Remus asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, these should be right,” Roman told him. “Five-letter word is </span>
  <em>
    <span>venom</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remus nodded and turned the small dials on the lock, filling the room with a quiet series of clicks. “What’s the six-letter?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Deceit</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman watched as Remus turned the dials to their proper places, and a series of somewhat louder clicks filled the room. The light on the module the two combination locks were set into went out.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Now for the keypad,” Remus mused.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Standard zero through nine, no fading on any keys, no indication of what the code could be, aside from,” Roman paused for a moment, counting the asterisks on the digital display, “it’s a five-digit code.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fuck… Could be anything,” Remus cursed.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>“Hello,” Janus piped up. His voice felt as if it were caught in his throat, and he wasn’t sure if anyone actually heard him, until Roman and Remus looked towards him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Uh, hi?” Remus replied, cocking an eyebrow.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, no,” Janus shook his head. “If there’s a pin code for something, he’d set </span>
  <em>
    <span>hello</span>
  </em>
  <span>, especially if he set it up personally. My father may be intelligent and cunning, but he’s shit when it comes to actually coming up with clever pin codes.” He pulled away from Virgil’s side, approaching the twins and kneeling by the coffee table. He could feel all five sets of eyes on him as he typed in the familiar sequence.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>
    <span>0-7-7-3-4</span>
  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The light on the final module went out, and a series of clicks sounded from the device. Janus carefully picked up the entire assembly, revealing an envelope underneath it. He picked up the envelope and held it up to the light. Upon finding nothing out of the ordinary, Janus opened it, finding a folded sheet of paper inside.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>***</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Juliette,</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>The fact that you’ve made it this far is no surprise, you were always an intelligent girl. But, intelligence alone can only get you so far in this world. The next challenge you will face will require not only your brain, but your brawn, as well.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>You have claimed for years that you are a man. This will be your chance to try to </span>
  </em>
  <b>
    <em>prove</em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span> that to me.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>If your Uncle is so important to you, come and take him back.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>You have until Friday evening to come up with a plan. If you can’t manage by then, well, I’m sure you can figure out what will happen.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Prove you have the balls to come and save him.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Prove you have the balls to face me.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Father</span>
  </em>
</p><p>***</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Janus read the letter over and over to himself. He took a deep breath, setting the letter down before turning his attention to the others. Everyone else was silent, waiting to hear what he would say.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We need to come up with a plan,” he stated. “We’ve got until Friday evening. We’ll need to figure out a way to get in and out of Viper’s place, figure out how to get Remy and Logan out without getting killed, and figure out how to get me in front of that no good son of a bitch.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The room was quiet for a moment, as everyone seemed to process what Janus had just said. Soon, Virgil smirked, stepping towards him. “Then let’s get started. Time’s ticking.”</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Chapter Overview:</p><p>Roman and Remus work to disarm the bomb found in the previous chapter. Sets of wires are cut, and two letter-combination locks are solved (their codes being VENOM and DECEIT). The final measure is a keypad, which Janus easily solves, knowing the code that would be used, seeing as his father set it (that code being HELLO or 0-7-7-3-4).</p><p>Inside the box, the group finds another note from Janus' father, which gives the group until Friday evening to come up with a way to get Logan (and Remy) back. Virgil prompts the group to get working in a moment of confidence, saying that time's ticking.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0018"><h2>18. Nothing Will Stand Against Us</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>There's nothing too serious in this chapter that I can find for a serious heads up. There are mentions of injuries dotted around, but nothing too explicit. Just be aware of that going forward.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The next week felt as if it went by in a blur.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus, Virgil, Patton, and Emile were staying in a safe-house with Roman and Remus. The teens went to school as they usually did, though Roman would pick them up after school and take them to the SBIS office. He would make sure they got any homework they had done, before bringing them to one of the training areas. From there, he and Remus would supervise the teens and give them all a crash course in various disciplines they would need to know in order to pull off their plan on Friday night.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman taught Virgil how to fire a gun and taught Emile how to fight. Remus taught Patton how to assert himself and taught Janus how to hide his fear and use his anger to his advantage without going too far. Every day, the teens made more and more progress, and they were determined to make this plan work.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Remy had no idea how long it had been since Remus managed to get out. He hardly cared at this point; death almost seemed like a pretty good option by now.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn’t know where Logan was. The two of them had been separated after Remus got out to prevent either of them from trying the same thing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remy knew he probably looked like hell. He certainly </span>
  <em>
    <span>felt</span>
  </em>
  <span> like hell. He knew his left wrist was broken, he hadn’t eaten since the day he and the others were taken, he’d hardly had anything to drink, and the bastards who were keeping him and Logan captive were having a field day with their interrogations. Remy had a split lip, and cuts and bruises all over his body from them, but he’d still refused to give up any information.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>With no bobby pins, or anything else that could help him pick his way out of the handcuffs that bound him, Remy was stuck, only able to wait. He could only hope that Remus, Roman, and the kids would be able to get them out of this.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Logan tried to remind themself that Patton knew everything he needed to in order to get through this, that he had Roman, Remus, and his friends by his side. It wasn’t easy, but they tried.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan was well aware that they weren’t in good shape. They’d been shot twice the night they were taken, once in the left side, and once in the right shoulder. They were covered in bruises, cuts, and even a number of burns from their captor’s interrogations, but they remained silent. Their wrists were cut and raw from them trying to slip their hands out of the handcuffs, and the combination of the cold in the room, the stress Logan was putting on their wrists, and the position their hands were being forced into were causing the joints to stiffen up and become more than a bit sore. Try as they might, Logan was having trouble finding a logical reason why they shouldn’t just give up and let whatever was going to happen to them happen.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That is, until they remind themself that Patton is out there, and most likely fighting to find them. They remind themself that they are Patton’s only parent, and they need to be there for him. They remembered that Celeste made them promise that they would look out for Patton.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>So, Logan fought. They took every hit, cut, and burn, they thought of plan after plan to try to get out. They wouldn’t let anything stand between them and getting back to Patton.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>By Friday, the teens were as ready as they were going to get. Virgil wasn’t the best shot, but he’d be able to manage if he needed to. Janus was a better shot than Virgil, and Roman had no doubt that he’d be just fine in that aspect. Virgil had picked up the technological aspect of things quickly, and managed to get his hands on the floor plans for the Prescott estate. He’d also managed to find a weak point in the security system, which would allow for him to let Janus, Patton, Emile, and Roman in without too much issue. Patton had brushed up his skills in picking double-lock handcuffs, and learned from Remus how to blend in with the crowd the four of them would be walking into. Emile learned how to wield a knife in case things got out of hand, since they weren’t comfortable handling a gun.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman took a deep breath. Remus and Virgil would be working the circuit and keeping tabs on the team while the rest of them went in. He fastened the button of his deep red suit jacket and adjusted his tie. The camera he was outfitted with was disguised in the tie bar he wore, and his earpiece was secure in his ear. From here, he needed to trust that the kids would be able to pull this whole thing off.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Janus, Emile, and Patton were all getting ready for the night together. The meeting being held tonight was set up more as a social event, and required at least Janus and Patton to dress nicely, as they would likely be seen.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus adjusted his bowtie, making sure it was centered. This wasn’t the tie he’d worn for the Formal; instead, this was a slightly wider tie, which allowed for a small camera to be hidden in the center, disguised as the knot of the tie. The rest of his outfit was the same suit he’d worn for the Formal a week ago. It was almost odd to think about that night and then consider what he, his cousin, and their friends were about to do.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>While Janus got ready in one corner of the room, Patton got ready in another, adjusting his tie and the more discreet shoulder holster he had on. His camera was hidden in his glasses, as they had removed the false lenses from Remy’s usual camera-enabled set and placed a set of lenses with Patton’s prescription in the frames. He was nervous as he settled his sidearm in its place in the holster, and glanced over towards his cousin, watching him do the same. The two of them were about to do something even crazier than when Patton had helped Janus and Virgil get into the Prescott home in order to get Janus’ things. They were basically about to kick the hornet’s nest from the inside.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Meanwhile, Emile pulled on a set of gear SBIS was letting them use. The gear consisted of a well-fitting set of pants, boots, a turtleneck, gloves, camera harness, and an earpiece, all of which were a very dark navy blue and were designed to take a beating, while also allowing for as much freedom of movement as possible. They had a knife sheathed at their side, and secured their camera in place. Rather than having the camera in the center of Emile’s chest like last time, the harness held the camera much closer to their shoulder, though it was compact enough to not be in the way. While Patton and Janus made their way in with the rest of the crowd, Emile would be sneaking into an entrance towards the back of the building in order to make their way down to where Logan and Remy were likely to be held.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Virgil waited with Roman for his friends to come into the living area of the safe-house, typing away on the keyboard of the SBIS laptop perched on his lap. He took a deep breath, hoping that his friends and boyfriend would be alright.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He paused for a moment, had he just pinned Janus as his </span>
  <em>
    <span>boyfriend</span>
  </em>
  <span>? Sure, that’s what they were, at this point. At least, Virgil thought so, but he realized in that moment that they had never actually discussed what they were after the Formal like they’d originally planned to.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He shook his head, there would be time to think about all that later. Right now, Virgil had to focus on getting the circuit for their cameras and communications set up, making sure he had his access point for the security system identified so he could get to it, had safeguards to put in place to monitor how much time the team had inside, and had a line set up to call for SBIS backup once things really got rolling. It was a </span>
  <em>
    <span>lot</span>
  </em>
  <span> to manage, but somehow, it felt natural to Virgil, as if he were meant to do this. The thought brought a subtle smile to his face, which was still there when Janus, Emile, and Patton came out to meet with him and Roman. At that point, his jaw practically dropped.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil couldn’t help but stare at his boyfriend -yep, apparently he was just gonna keep calling Janus that-. Janus was dressed in his suit from the Formal, though he had decided to not wear his bowler hat, and wore a slightly wider bow tie. Virgil had to admit to himself that he liked the other bow tie just a bit more. The suit looked just as good as Virgil remembered, and it made Janus look extremely well put together. Coupled with Janus’ usual makeup from the meetings, he couldn’t help but think that the other boy looked like a hot villain in the best ways possible.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Once again, I think I might </span>
  <em>
    <span>actually</span>
  </em>
  <span> be gay,” he breathed, joking just a little bit in order to diffuse some of the tension.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shut your mouth, Virgil, you’ll catch flies,” Janus quipped, using one of his gloved hands to shut Virgil’s mouth, his touch lingering for a second before he pulled his hand back.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You look great,” Virgil complimented.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You guys’re gonna need callsigns for this,” Roman interrupted. “We don’t usually use our real names for this stuff, too much risk, y’know?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Like how you’re called </span>
  <em>
    <span>Crown</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Patton asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll keep running with </span>
  <em>
    <span>Deceit</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Janus determined. “It flows, it fits, and honestly, I like it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think I’ll go with </span>
  <em>
    <span>Morality</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Patton decided.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Doc</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Emile stated simply.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why </span>
  <em>
    <span>Doc</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Roman questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wanna be a therapist in the future,” Emile explained.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fair enough.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think I’m gonna ditch the old name and give </span>
  <em>
    <span>Anxiety</span>
  </em>
  <span> a shot,” Virgil stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, moderately threatening, I like it,” Janus mused.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not a bad pick,” Roman chuckled. “The circuit all set?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Set and stable, from what I can tell,” Virgil confirmed. “Your cameras are all set up, earpieces hooked up and volume-adjusted, at least going to you guys from my end, anyways. I’ve got the weak point identified to let you guys do your thing, safeguards ready to be put in place, and I’ve got a line to SBIS backup on standby.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wow, Virge! It’s like you’re a pro at this, already!” Patton exclaimed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, Pat,” Virgil accepted, rubbing the back of his neck a bit. “We should probably get going, huh?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, there’s not much time left,” Janus confirmed.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Remus was driving Roman’s car towards the Prescott estate, with Virgil in the passenger seat next to him. The teen was rapidly typing on the laptop he had perched on his lap, finalizing a few things. Meanwhile, Patton was driving Logan’s car ahead of them, with Roman, Janus, and Emile also in the vehicle.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Might as well test this out now,” Virgil stated. “Can you guys all hear me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Loud and clear, Virgil!”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Patton replied, coming through Remus’ earpiece.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Clear as day,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Emile confirmed.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Crystal clear, kid,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Roman chimed in.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“We all hear you perfectly, my Chemically-Imbalanced Romance,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Janus told him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh my god, you dork,” Virgil chuckled. “You all sound clear for me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Everyone sounds good here,” Remus agreed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Everybody’s clear on the plan, right?” Virgil asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Roman, Janus, and I are gonna make our way in through the main entrance of the house. While we do that, Emile’s gonna make their way around to the back entrance,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Patton stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“From there, Patton and I will blend in with the crowd. I’ll be keeping an eye out while Patton starts to make his way through the halls towards the cellar door, where Emile should be by that point,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Roman added.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“While Patton and Emile are working on finding Logan and Remy, and Roman’s keeping an eye open for anything going wrong, I’ll be making my way to Viper’s study, where he’s sure to be. If I don’t find him there, I’ll be patching Virgil into his computer, then heading down to the cellar to meet up with Patton and Emile,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Janus rattled off.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Patton and I will do our best in the cellar to find Remy and Mx. Holmes, and signal to Roman and Janus when we find them. We’ll get them free, and bring them out the back way if we can,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Emile continued.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Once you guys find Remy and Logan, I’ll signal for SBIS backup. If you guys can’t get the two of them out, the incoming agents will be able to help. Either way, they’ll be able to handle the situation with the majority of the Order members in attendance, Viper included,” Virgil confirmed. “And Janus, you know what to do if Viper tries anything like last time, right?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Show him I’ve got the balls to bring him to his knees,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Janus replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Cap the bastard if you need to,” Virgil told him, half-joking.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Looks like we’re pulling up on location, now,” Remus interrupted. “Everyone ready?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Ready as we’ll ever be, Sib,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Roman replied.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>“Do you really think we’ll be able to do this, Jan?” Patton asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus looked over at his cousin, lightly patting his shoulder with a gloved hand. “With this team? Nothing will stand against us,” he told the other boy. That seemed to convince Patton that everything would be alright, and the group got out of Logan’s car, readying themselves for the task at hand. With a deep breath, Janus started up the walkway to the house, straightening his posture and holding his head high as he led Patton and Roman to the door. Janus flashed his Order badge, while Roman flashed Remus’ badge and Patton flashed Virgil’s. Surprisingly, no questions were asked, and the trio was allowed inside. The plan was officially in motion.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>The chapter going up next week is no doubt my favorite chapter in this entire story, and it might just be my favorite thing I've written in the near decade I've been writing, honestly.</p><p>I want to give an advanced warning for it, though. Chapter 19 is, well it's A LOT. The doc itself is roughly 10 pages long, and includes mentions of injuries, misgendering and dead-naming (on part of Janus' Father, as usual), graphic descriptions of fighting and injuries, and a cliffhanger I couldn't avoid unless I wanted to put out a chapter that was another couple of pages longer with an awkward transition.</p><p>Chapter 19 is, in my mind, probably THE most important chapter in this story. There will be a full overview of the chapter in the end notes, as I've done with a number of other chapters in this story that fall on the more intense end of things. I just felt it necessary to give an advanced notice for it, because it is a very important chapter, and I want people to be able to prepare themselves and have time to figure out if they'll want to read the whole thing, or need to skip it.</p><p>There will be another notice at the start of the next chapter, just to be safe. Please, take care of yourselves while reading this.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0019"><h2>19. Kicking the Hornet's Nest From the Inside</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Heads up for this chapter!</p><p>As I stated in the note for the last chapter, this chapter is, well, it's A LOT. This chapter includes the following:<br/>&gt;Mentions of Injuries<br/>&gt;Misgendering and Dead-naming (on part of Janus' Father, as usual; this segment will be marked with the usual asterisk book-ending ***)<br/>&gt;Graphic Descriptions of Fighting, Injuries, and Burns.</p><p>With that said, this is without a doubt my favorite chapter of this story, and it's in the running for my favorite thing I've ever written since I started writing almost a decade ago. If you do choose to skip over this chapter, there will be a note at the end summing it up, just as a few previous chapters have had.</p><p>This is also the last chapter of this story going up this year! Chapter 20 will go up on 6 January, 2021.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Patton hadn’t known what to expect when Janus had stated that the meeting was being treated as a social event for the Order, but it certainly hadn’t been this. Everyone inside was dressed up, wearing suits and dresses, some wearing masks, while others wore elaborate makeup like Janus was. He took a calming breath, and slipped into the role he had to play to make this work. The teen kept his posture straight, but made an effort to not seem too stiff. He kept close to the edges of the crowd, catching Roman’s eye from across the room. The man gave a subtle shake of his head, signaling that it was too early for Patton to duck into the hall and make his way towards the cellar, and Patton returned a subtle nod of understanding.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They couldn’t throw away their shot. They had one chance to get this right, and it had to count. As much as Patton wanted to rush to find Logan and Remy, he thought back to one of the first things Logan had taught him when he was little; patience pays off.</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Emile kept to the shadows as they made their way around the side of the Prescott house. They could faintly hear the chatter from the people inside, but paid it no mind. The teen kept an eye out for anyone patrolling the grounds, especially as they got closer to the back door.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“You’re getting close, Doc,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Virgil -</span>
  <em>
    <span>Anxiety</span>
  </em>
  <span>- told them. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“This door coming up, that’ll be your way in. From there, you’ll wanna head left, and go through the second door on your right, that’ll lead you down to the cellar.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got it, Anxiety,” Emile replied. They followed the directions they’d been given, heading through the door they came across and finding they were in a short, empty hall. Taking a breath, Emile moved quickly, finding the door Virgil had told them about. The door was locked, though they easily bypassed that by using a trick Patton had taught them; they used a stiff card from their pocket to force the latch to disengage, and hooked an elastic around the doorknob and over the latch to keep the door from locking again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The stairs leading down to the cellar were made of cold stone, and it wouldn’t have surprised Emile if they were heading into what had once been intended to be a wine cellar. There was little light, just barely enough for them to see that they were coming to the base of the stairs. They ducked into a dark corner in order to get their bearings.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay, I’m in the cellar, any idea where I’m headed, Anxiety?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Gimme a sec, Doc, gotta adjust your camera a bit, it’s fucking dark in there.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Emile remained crouched in the corner, waiting for Virgil to give them something to work with.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Okay, I </span>
  </em>
  <b>
    <em>think</em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span> if you go down that main hall and take a right, you </span>
  </em>
  <b>
    <em>should</em>
  </b>
  <em>
    <span> be able to find some cells, they’ve probably got Remy and Logan in those. They’re probably not together, considering the Duke’s escape.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’re probably guarded,” Emile pointed out.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Remember what Crown taught you, then. Knock ‘em out if you have to.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay,” they whispered. They took a slow breath, and began to make their way down the main hall. Upon hearing footsteps behind them, Emile ducked behind a stack of plastic bins, hardly daring to even breathe.</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>“Doc?” Patton whispered, creeping into the hall from the stairwell. He’d seen Emile duck out of view, but he wasn’t sure exactly where they’d hidden.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Morality?” Emile emerged after a moment, stepping out from behind a stack of plastic bins.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I feel like a spider’s gonna drop on me any second,” Patton shuddered.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Stay focused, Morality,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Janus’ voice came through his earpiece. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“I don’t remember ever seeing any spiders down there, anyways. You’ll be fine.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Still creepy…” Patton softly whined. “Let’s just find Remy and Cenn and get out of here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Emile nodded in agreement and led the way down the hall. Where the hall split into a T, the pair turned right, just as Virgil had instructed, and found a handful of brick cells. The two teens kept to the shadows, though didn’t spot anyone in the hall in front of them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’re either guarded on the inside, or they’re not guarded at all,” Patton determined.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Always work under the assumption that there’s a guard somewhere,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Roman’s voice came over the frequency.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got it,” the boy replied. He and Emile crept forward quietly, finding several cells with their doors ajar, until they got to the last pair, which had their doors shut and locked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Remember what I showed you, Doc?” Patton questioned, looking towards his friend as he pulled his lockpicks out of the inside pocket of his suit. It was a compact set of basic picks, which Roman had said most agents carry with them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I might be a little slower than you are, but I think I remember,” Emile confirmed, pulling out their own set.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Each teen turned to one of the doors and got to work, doing their best to quickly pick the lock in front of them. As expected, Patton managed to get through first, and slowly and carefully opened the door. He tucked the lockpicks into his pocket, and set his hand on the grip of his gun, just in case anyone but Remy or Logan was inside the room. When there was no sign that he would be attacked, he stood more upright, stepping fully into the dark space. In front of him, he could make out the figure of someone sitting on a folding chair, their hands cuffed behind their back and ankles tied with a length of rope. The figure was slumped over, but the gentle and steady rise and fall of their shoulders indicated that they were still breathing. Patton approached, keeping an eye on his surroundings, until he was in front of the figure.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Cenn,” he breathed, hurriedly kneeling in front of Logan. The boy could tell they were in rough shape, even with such little light.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Patton…?” Logan quietly heaved, squinting at the teen. “What are you doing here…?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Getting you out, silly,” Patton replied, smiling just a bit. He pulled the knife he was carrying out of his pocket and used it to cut the rope binding Logan’s ankles. After that, he tucked the knife away and pulled out his lockpicks, moving behind Logan to pick the locks on their handcuffs.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’re double-lock cuffs…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I figured.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton hurriedly picked the locks on the handcuffs, biting his lip as he concentrated. When the final lock softly clicked and he removed the cuffs, he set them aside carefully, not wanting to make any extra noise.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can you walk, Cenn?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t… I do not think so…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Anxiety, if you’re gonna call in backup, now’s the time to do it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Anxiety…?”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Already on it, Morality. Crown’s on his way down to you guys, and Deceit’s just outside Viper’s study. Backup’s on the way,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Virgil’s words came fairly quickly, though his voice was calm as he spoke.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good,” Patton acknowledged.</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>Emile smiled to themself as they managed to pick their way through the lock and open the cell door in front of them. The room was quiet and dark, and they pulled out their knife just in case anyone except Logan or Remy was inside. They weren’t attacked immediately, nor once they were fully inside the room.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Inside, sitting on a folding metal chair, with hands bound with cuffs behind them and ankles tied together, was a figure. Emile approached, and was able to make out the person’s dirty white T-shirt.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Remy?” they addressed, stepping into Remy’s view.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, kid,” Remy croaked, before grinding his teeth a bit.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ll get you out of here,” Emile told him, using his knife to cut the man’s ankles free.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wrist’s broken,” Remy told them. “Couple ribs, too, probably…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll be careful,” the teen replied. They started trying to pick the locks on Remy’s handcuffs, though they were clearly struggling a bit. “Morality, I’m having trouble with these cuffs…”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“They’re double-lock cuffs,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Patton told them through their earpiece. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Come across the hall and keep an eye on Cenn, I’ll get those cuffs off.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Don’t bother, Morality,”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Roman’s voice chimed in. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“I’m almost to you guys, I’ll help Doc.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Within a moment, Roman entered the room, and Emile stepped aside, handing off their lockpicks to him. They watched as Roman expertly picked the locks, freeing Remy.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“About time, babe,” Remy quipped.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You look like </span>
  <em>
    <span>shit</span>
  </em>
  <span>, Sleep,” Roman told him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Your callsign is </span>
  <em>
    <span>Sleep</span>
  </em>
  <span>?” Emile asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yep,” Remy responded, giving a slight huff of a laugh.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Backup’s on the way,” Roman informed Remy. “Can you walk?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Maybe? Assholes probably cracked a couple of my ribs, existing hurts, but I might be able to manage,” the seated man answered. “Brain’s in worse shape, I think…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t want to take unnecessary risks with this. We’ll have to wait for backup.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Emile watched the exchange, and glanced across the hall to where Patton and Logan were. Patton was kneeling beside Logan, seemingly inspecting their injuries. Roman was looking over Remy’s injuries, going so far as to remove his tie and use it to wrap the other man’s injured wrist. Emile wasn’t sure what to do, so they simply stood by, in case anyone needed extra help. All they could do now, was wait.</span>
</p>
<hr/><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus adjusted his suit jacket and capelet, and tugged at his gloves a bit. He took a deep breath to steady himself, and opened the door to his father’s study without bothering to knock.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Viper,” Janus addressed. He stood in the doorway, back-lit by the hallway light behind him, casting a shadow that stretched into the room in front of him. Aside from the fire burning in the open fireplace that sat at the left wall, the only other light coming into the room was coming from behind Janus.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Juliette,” Joseph mused. The man was sitting in the elegant chair behind his desk, the back turned towards the door as he looked out the window.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She’s not here at the moment, may I take a message?” Janus quipped. He clasped his hands behind his back to keep them from shaking.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Joseph chuckled lowly. “I didn’t think you were going to show up.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, you wanted me here, so here I am.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus watched as Joseph turned his chair around to face him. The man rested his elbows on the armrests of the chair, and had his hands steepled. He sat up straight and tall, as he always did. “You cut your hair.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You got cut in the barber’s chair.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How did you-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re wearing the high collar,” Janus cut off Joseph’s question. “You only ever wear the shirt with a high collar when you’ve gotten cut. He should’ve shaved you closer, could’ve slit your throat.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll admit, he got a bit close this time. But, we aren’t here to talk about the skill of my barber.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, there’s a much more important issue on the table.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, there is,” Joseph picked up a flash drive from his desk, coolly observing it as he turned the small device in his hand. “You’re here for this, aren’t you? The files that could bring most of the developed world to its knees.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You copied them all to one drive?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The only remaining copy of these files sits in my hand.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I never thought you’d pull such a stupid move.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Joseph turned his gaze back to Janus, looking the boy in the eye as he slipped the drive into the inside chest pocket of his suit jacket. “It is only a stupid move if you manage to somehow get close enough to me to get at it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Careful, you know how I am with challenges, Viper,” Janus smirked, taking a step into the room, towards Joseph.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And you know that a little girl doesn’t scare me one bit,” Joseph maintained.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But a young man with a bone to pick with you should,” Janus told him. He took another step towards Joseph.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A bone to pick, hm? And what would that be?” Joseph questioned, steepling his hands once again as he leaned back in his chair, seeming to hardly care about the boy.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“For starters, you’ve hurt countless innocent civilians,” Janus stated, taking another step forward.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ve done whatever it takes to keep this Order up and running,” Joseph reasoned, shifting to sit up properly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yet you’ve ignored a number of warning signs that would tell you that things are becoming unstable.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Another step. Janus was halfway between the door and the desk Joseph sat behind. He smirked subtly as the man stiffened just a bit under his gaze.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You hurt Patton.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Another step.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You hurt Mom.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Another step.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You hurt Logan.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Another step.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ve refused to see me as your </span>
  <em>
    <span>son</span>
  </em>
  <span>, despite the fact that I </span>
  <em>
    <span>am</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Another step.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And you know what else? The cherry on top?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus reached the desk, and Joseph stood, glaring at his son. He leaned forward, resting his hands on the surface of the desk. “Enlighten me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus copied Joseph’s posture, resting his hands on the desk, bringing himself eye-to-eye with the man in front of him. “You signed, threatened, and hurt my </span>
  <em>
    <span>boyfriend</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” he fumed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And just what are you going to do about it, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Juliette</span>
  </em>
  <span>?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m going to make you say my name.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’d like to see you </span>
  <em>
    <span>try</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Joseph dared, not moving from his position.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“With </span>
  <em>
    <span>pleasure</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” Janus replied, a glint in his eye and a smirk crossing his features. The boy straightened up quickly, balling his left hand into a fist and pulling back. By the time Joseph registered what was happening, it was too late. Janus’ gloved fist struck the man square in the face, and his smirk only widened as the satisfying, telltale </span>
  <em>
    <span>crack</span>
  </em>
  <span> of Joseph’s nose being broken reached his ears.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Joseph stumbled back a couple of steps, holding a hand going to his bleeding nose. When he pulled his hand away and saw the blood, he glared at Janus with a fire Janus had never seen. “You little </span>
  <em>
    <span>bitch</span>
  </em>
  <span>!” he growled. “You’ll pay for that!” Joseph grabbed one of the decorations on his desk, a metal statue of a snake poised to strike, and swung it at Janus.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ll pay for everything you’ve done!” Janus retaliated. He stepped back, out of Joseph’s reach, and grabbed a tool from the stand by the fireplace in the office. The teen swung it at the man in front of him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The criminal blocked the tool that was coming towards him with the statue in his hand and tried again, drawing his arm back and stepping forward, swinging at the teen. Janus reflexively blocked the strike with his arm, and let out a pained yell when he was struck.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Don’t block with your arm, Deceit,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>Remus’ voice came through his earpiece. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Block with your weapon, aim for the center of gravity, groin, or face.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus didn’t verbally respond, though he followed the advice he was given, aiming his next strike at Joseph’s face. He made contact, and the man stumbled, cursing as blood trickled from his nose and the fresh cut on the right side of his head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Joseph sneered at the boy in front of him and threw the statue he held at him. Janus was hit in the shin, and forced down on one knee, though he only took his eyes off Joseph for half a second. The adult stepped closer, and Janus waited for his chance. He used the fire poker in his hand to stab at Joseph’s leg.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You </span>
  <em>
    <span>bastard</span>
  </em>
  <span>!” Joseph cried, stepping back and wrenching the poker from Janus’ grasp.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Now we’re making a bit of progress,” Janus sassed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Joseph said nothing, and simply swung the poker now in his hand at Janus’ head. The metal tool made contact, and knocked Janus off balance, forcing the boy to brace both hands against the ground to prevent himself from completely falling over.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus cursed under his breath, pressing his hand to the left side of his face. When he spotted blood on his yellow glove, he clenched his jaw. The teen attempted to stand, though he was struck a second time, which forced him down onto his elbow as the room spun a bit. A third blow knocked the teen completely to the floor. He could hear the poker get tossed aside, clattering against the hardwood floor. Joseph grabbed the front of Janus’ shirt, jostling the boy who could feel the heat of the fire beside him on his face.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ve been a thorn in my side for far too long, boy!” Joseph shouted, his bloodied face contorted with rage. As Janus was trying to regain his bearings, he felt the heat of the fire growing hotter and hotter against his face, and it only took a second for him to realize that Joseph was forcing him closer to the flames.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Finally, a little recognition for who I am,” Janus mused, before kicking up with his left leg. The impact of his shin between Joseph’s legs brought the man to his knees, though he refused to let go of Janus’ shirt. The teen reached forward, gripping the lapels of Joseph’s jacket, attempting to pull himself away from the fire just enough to avoid being burned. The temperature against his skin was painful, and he was close enough now to the flames that his hair was getting singed, if the smell was anything to go by.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shut up!” Joseph demanded, glaring daggers at the teen in his grasp. He put more of his strength into trying to push the boy into the fire.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Deceit, shoulders!”</span>
  </em>
  <span> Virgil’s voice suddenly shouted in his ear. Janus understood just what his boyfriend meant. He braced his left leg against Joseph’s, and took his hands off the man’s lapels. He grabbed the man’s right arm, and harshly pushed against his left shoulder with all his might.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He felt searing heat against the left side of his face and screamed as Joseph tumbled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Working quickly, Janus pushed himself away from the fire, forcing himself to not reach up and touch his face. Disoriented, he unbuttoned his suit jacket and pulled his gun out of the holster. He flicked the safety off, and jolted as Joseph grabbed his shirt once again. The boy’s vision was blurred, but he felt he had enough of an idea of where he was aiming.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He pulled the trigger.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Joseph yelled and fell, shoving Janus towards the fire as he went down.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus felt the heat on his face again, as well as on his neck and shoulder. The smell of his hair and flesh burning was enough to make him want to gag, but he resisted the urge. He fired at Joseph again, the sound making his ears ring. The teen pushed himself away from the fire, no longer feeling hands on him, and felt for Joseph. The man was writhing on the ground, too distracted to notice as Janus plucked the flash drive from his pocket.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Neither one of them noticed as SBIS agents ran into the office.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus was hardly aware of what anyone said after that, only catching bits and pieces of things. He heard cursing, he heard his name, though he couldn’t pick out whose voice was speaking it, he heard what seemed to be bits of questions he couldn’t understand and couldn’t answer. He just kept his fist clenched around the flash drive in his hand as best he could, as the world faded into darkness.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Chapter Overview:</p><p>Patton, Roman, Emile, and Janus make their way into the Prescott house, setting in motion their plan to get Logan and Remy back. Emile makes their way into the cellar where the two are being held first, followed by Patton. As they head down with Virgil talking them through where to go, Roman is keeping an eye out for anyone potentially growing suspicious, and Janus makes his way to the office where his father, Viper, is likely to be.</p><p>Patton and Emile find Logan and Remy, thankfully unguarded, though both are in bad shape, and they must wait for backup to arrive before they can get the pair out of the house.</p><p>Meanwhile, upstairs, Janus comes to Viper's office. Viper has transferred the files that are the center of all of this, containing information that could lead much of the developed world to collapse, to a single drive currently in his possession. Janus tells him it's a stupid move, Viper says it's only stupid if Janus manages to get close enough to take the drive. Their conversation starts civil, though tense, until Janus starts to list off the things Viper has done, especially recently; He's hurt Patton, hurt Janus' mother, hurt Logan, refused to see Janus as his son, and signed, threatened, and hurt Janus' boyfriend, Virgil. When Viper asks what Janus is going to do about all of this, Janus' reply is simple.</p><p>"I'm going to make you say my name."</p><p>Following this, Janus breaks Viper's nose, and starts a fight that goes on for some time. Throughout the fight, some dialogue continues, with Viper initially sticking with his narrative that Janus is a girl. As the fight continues, his language starts to shift, in which Viper calls Janus "bastard", before pushing him down. There is a fireplace in the office, and Janus is dangerously close to it, with Viper over him, saying, "You've been a thorn in my side for too long, boy!"</p><p>Janus' face is close enough to start to burn from the heat of the fire, and he attempts to pull himself away from the flames. Viper attempts to shove him back into the fire, and Janus pulls out a gun he'd been armed with in case something happens. He fires at Viper's knee, and gets shoved into the flames as Viper screams. Janus fires again, and is able to pull himself from the fire, now that he no longer feels Viper's hands on him. Although he's disoriented, Janus manages to pluck the flash drive from Viper's pocket, and grasps it tight as backup arrives.</p><p>Janus isn't aware of much, at this point. He hears things going on, different voices talking, though he can't tell who's saying what. He hears his name, but isn't able to pick out who was saying it. He just holds onto the flash drive, as he eventually loses consciousness.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0020"><h2>20. The Aftermath (pt. 1)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I don't think there's anything major to give a heads-up for, aside from mentions of various injuries (though no in-depth descriptions of them).</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>After backup had arrived at the Prescott estate, Patton and Emile had emerged with Remy, but not Logan. The scene had been chaotic, to say the least. Bureau agents were swarming the property, working to arrest the Order members inside. A small handful got away, though it seemed most were taken into custody. Among the crowd, Remus spotted a pair of medical specialists -indicated by the white vests worn over their clothes- rolling a gurney out of the house.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remus had rushed over, approaching the other agents. He gasped when he saw the state Logan was in. They were battered and bruised, and if not for the rise and fall of their chest, Remus would have thought they were dead. Remus had insisted he be allowed to stay with Logan. The medical agents originally turned them down, though when Logan attempted to protest, the pair couldn’t argue. Remus was allowed to stay by Logan’s side on the way back to the building that served as their place of work, and the headquarters for SBIS.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>While Remus reunited with Logan, and Remy was whisked away by another medical agent, Virgil got out of the car, abandoning his laptop. He ran over to Patton and Emile, and after a few moments of discussion, he learned that Roman and the others had lost contact with Janus, just as he and Remus had. Roman had gone to find the boy once backup had arrived. The trio stuck together until they spotted Roman emerging from the house, accompanied by a woman wearing a white vest and wheeling a gurney. Roman’s body was obstructing their view of the person on the gurney, but something told Virgil that it had to be Janus. Once the gurney was lifted into a van, Roman jogged over to them. He instructed the teens to get into the cars, and told Patton to follow him back to the office, telling them that he would explain everything when they got back.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Patton hadn’t left Logan’s bedside for the last couple of days, and neither had Remus. Currently, he was watching some videos on Logan’s phone, still unsure about turning his own back on, even though Remus, Roman, and Remy had told him that it should be safe to do so.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>When he and the others had gotten back, Roman had told them that Janus had been in bad shape, and likely wouldn’t be able to have visitors for a while. He’d also said that Remy and Logan were both likely already in surgery.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Now, his attention was caught by the soft groan coming from Logan as they woke up. Logan had been out since they had gone into surgery, having only woken up for an hour or so just after, before the pain medication coming through their IV had put them out again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Cenn?” Patton addressed, looking up from the video he was watching.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Patton…?” Logan rasped, looking over at the boy and squinting against the bright lights in the room.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh thank goodness,” the teen breathed, standing up and leaning over the bed to carefully hug his parent.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good to have you back, Teach,” Remus smiled, setting a hand on Logan’s left shoulder.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan went to speak, though they were cut off by a fit of coughing. Patton hurried and grabbed a cup and filled it with water, putting a straw into it as he approached the bed again. After taking a few sips, Logan was able to speak. “Patton, are you alright? And Remus, are you? What about Remy and Roman? Are your friends all alright, Patton?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Whoa, slow down, Lo,” Remus urged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Roman, Emile, Virgil, and I are all okay, Cenn,” Patton told them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Remy had to go into surgery, he’s dehydrated, got a couple busted ribs, his nose had to get set back into place, and he’s got a cast on his wrist for the next couple months, but he’ll be okay,” Remus stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That accounts for everyone except for Janus,” Logan determined after a moment. “Is he alright?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well…” Patton hesitated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We lost contact with him while he was in Viper’s office,” Remus informed them. “Ro and one of the medical agents found him. He’s uh, well he’s in real rough shape, to say the least.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“None of us have been allowed to see him since he went into surgery,” Patton went on to say. “Only Roman’s seen him. They won’t even let Virgil in.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Romano was in earlier, and said that he’s still out. Doctor thinks he’ll be out for a little while longer,” Remus continued.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What happened to him?” Logan questioned. Patton and Remus didn’t answer. “Remus, what happened to my nephew?” they demanded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He got burned,” a voice cut in from the door. Patton, Remus, and Logan all turned to spot Roman standing in the doorway. “It’s bad, Logan. The left half of his face got the worst of it, but he’s also got burns on his neck, shoulder, upper arm, and part of his chest.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh my god…” Logan mumbled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton held Logan’s hand, squeezing it lightly. “He’ll… He’ll be okay… He’s strong.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Does April know?” Logan questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“April?” Roman inquired.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My aunt,” Patton clarified. “She’s Janus’ Mom. She lives in California.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t think she knows,” Roman admitted.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll call her, Cenn. You need to rest,” Patton insisted. He let go of Logan’s hand and stepped away, heading out into the hall.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Out in the hall, Patton pulled up Logan’s contact list, and selected the number labeled as </span>
  <em>
    <span>April Holmes</span>
  </em>
  <span>. He hit the dial option, and waited for an answer.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Hey little Sib, what’s up?”</span>
  </em>
  <span> his Aunt’s voice came through the speaker, holding a chipper tone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Um, hi, Aunt April… It’s Patton, actually,” Patton told her.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Pat? What’s up? What happened, why’re you calling from your Cenn’s phone?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Some things happened, a couple days ago. In the last week-ish, actually. Cenn’s a little out of it, and their glasses are missing, and they need rest. But um… I’m actually calling to tell you about Janus…”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“What happened? Is he okay?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“He got burned. Like, really bad… He’s still out, right now. The doctor says his face is the worst, but he has burns on his neck, shoulder, arm, and chest… I don’t know much more than that…”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Oh my god…”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know none of that sounds good, but, at least he’s alive. I wish I could say more, but, the doctors won’t let me or Emile in to see him. They won’t even let Virgil in. And Cenn’s laid up right now, so that’s all any of us really know.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“What are Logan’s injuries?”</span>
  </em>
  <span> April asked, after taking a few breaths to calm herself down.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Cenn’s pretty dehydrated, and they’ve got a lot of cuts and bruises and a few burns. Their wrists are in pretty bad shape, so they’re braced right now. They’ll probably have a sling for a while, too, because they got shot in the side and shoulder,” Patton informed her.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Is anyone else hurt?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“Remus has some cuts that’re healing, and his knee’s in a brace, but they’re okay, otherwise. Uncle Remy’s also dehydrated, and he has a couple broken ribs, his nose was broken, and his wrist was broken, so he has a cast.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He heard April sigh in relief on the other end of the line. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“Okay… That’s good. I’m going to book a ticket on the next flight out, okay? It sounds like you all need me out there.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think we do,” Patton agreed. “I can come pick you up when you get in, if you want. Just text the info to Cenn’s phone, not mine.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Did something happen to your phone?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s in rice.”</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>“Okay, then,” </span>
  </em>
  <span>April didn’t really sound convinced, but she went along with it. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“I’ll send the info when I have it. I love you, send my love to Logan and JD.”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“I will! Love you, too, Aunt April,” Patton replied. The call ended with that, and Patton turned to head back into Logan’s room, when Roman stopped him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Let them have a bit of time, bud,” the man told him. Patton simply nodded in understanding and went to find his friends.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>“I would’ve killed to get you back, you know that, right?” Remus asked. They were sitting by Logan’s bedside, holding their hand. The brace on Logan’s wrist made it a bit awkward, but they made it work.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know,” Logan confirmed. “And had our roles been reversed, I would have done the same.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You would’ve?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan nodded. “Remus… Considering everything that has happened, I feel that, well, that I shouldn’t keep this a secret anymore…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Keep what a secret, Lo?” Remus questioned, tilting his head a bit.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I like you, Remus.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, I’d hope so!” Remus exclaimed. “We’ve worked together for years, we trained together, we’re friends, I’d think you liking me was pretty obvious.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not just like that, Remus. Not just platonically,” Logan told them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wait, are you saying… Are you trying to say that you love me?” he asked, looking at the other agent with wide eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Y’know what, Teach?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wanna punch you in the mouth. With my own mouth. Softly. Because I like you, too,” Remus admitted. He knew there was a blush forming on his cheeks, he could feel the heat.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You have my consent to do so,” Logan told them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You are </span>
  <em>
    <span>such</span>
  </em>
  <span> a nerd,” Remus chuckled, before standing up and leaning over the bed, capturing Logan’s lips in a kiss.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It wasn’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>exactly</span>
  </em>
  <span> how Remus had pictured it. It wasn’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>anything</span>
  </em>
  <span> like they’d pictured it, really. Roman was usually the romantic one, but Remus had their moments. He’d originally pictured the two of them being on a nice date, maybe stargazing from this one spot he knew about on a hill a little ways beyond the city limits, laying on a blanket. They would confess their feelings to one another while talking about constellations, and share their first kiss under the stars. Remus had always imagined Logan’s lips would be soft and that their kiss would taste like mint or coffee.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Instead, they were sharing their first kiss in one of the rooms in the medical wing of SBIS headquarters, with Logan laid up, battered and bruised. Their lips were dry and chapped, rough against Remus’ own, and they could taste hints of copper from the blood that had lingered in Logan’s mouth. It wasn’t nearly as romantic as he’d pictured it, but he didn’t really care.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The pair finally parted, both with gentle smiles. Remus let their head rest on Logan’s left shoulder, holding their hand. The two of them remained like that for a few moments, before Remus finally broke the silence.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“After they release you, maybe we could go out to dinner? If you’re up for it at that point, y’know?” he clumsily asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I would enjoy that,” Logan replied. They yawned a bit shortly after speaking.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Get some sleep, Bee Vomit,” Remus urged.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You will </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> be calling me that,” Logan tiredly protested, though they didn’t object to Remus’ suggestion to rest. They lay their head on their pillow, and drifted off, with Remus remaining by their side, holding their hand.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Virgil sat in the passenger seat of Logan’s car as Patton drove. It had been several hours since his friend had called his Aunt, and now April was at the airport. Roman had gotten the green light for April to be allowed in to see Logan and Janus, which left the task of picking her up from the airport.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How long has it been since you last saw your Aunt?” he asked, turning down the volume on the music they had playing over the radio.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Three years, I think? I was on a trip with Emile and their Mom when Aunt April stopped by before leaving for California, so I missed her,” Patton replied. “Did you ever meet her?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, knew her pretty well. Janus and I met when we were in first grade, and we’d visit each other’s houses a lot. After his parents separated, if we weren’t at my place, we’d be at April’s. She basically became a second mom to me,” Virgil replied with a shrug. “I saw her like, a week before she left, I think. Janus was at her place for one last weekend, and I went to sleep over and helped them pack her last few things before she moved.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m excited to see her again,” Patton smiled, though his smile quickly faded. “I just wish it wasn’t because of all this.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah. This isn’t exactly a </span>
  <em>
    <span>good</span>
  </em>
  <span> situation, but, at least nobody’s dead.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The pair fell into a fairly comfortable silence at that point. They arrived at the airport, and Virgil immediately pulled his hood up over his head. There were a lot of people milling about; people in cars there to pick someone up, people walking out of the airport with bags, some with children they were trying to keep close (or not, in some cases). He looked out the window as they pulled into a spot and Patton shot a text to his Aunt from Logan’s phone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do you wanna come in and meet her at the baggage claim with me?” Patton asked as he unbuckled his seat belt. “You don’t have to, you can just stay here, if you want. I know it’s a lot of people.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil took a second to look out the window at the people. Most seemed to just be waiting for their ride, though there was no telling what it was like inside. After a moment, he unbuckled his seat belt. “Nah, I’ll come in.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He couldn’t help but chuckle when Patton squealed a bit, shutting off the engine of the car and pocketing the key. The boys got out of the car and approached the airport, slipping inside as a few other people came out. Inside, it was a bit crowded, and Virgil stuck close to Patton’s side. The pair waded through the crowd, and approached the baggage claim, where they spotted a woman who was a couple of years older than Logan grabbing a bag off the conveyor belt. She had wavy, medium-blonde hair, which was pulled back into a ponytail, and wore a pale pink blouse and grey slacks, and looked as if she’d been in a meeting earlier in the day.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Aunt April?” Patton called out. The woman looked towards the two teens and smiled, adjusting her grip on the bag she’d grabbed off the baggage claim and approaching them, shrugging her smaller bag onto her shoulder.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My Little Frog and my Dark Strange Son!” she exclaimed. Virgil watched as she pulled Patton into a tight hug, which the pair held for a moment before letting go. He smiled when she turned to him, and they exchanged a hug, though it didn’t last quite as long. It almost surprised Virgil that April still remembered that he wasn’t usually one for hugs that lasted a long time. “You boys look great! I </span>
  <em>
    <span>love</span>
  </em>
  <span> the purple, Virge,” she told them with a smile.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks,” Virgil replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, let’s get going,” April sighed. “No time to lose, right?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Patton agreed. “We parked right outside.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The trio made their way out to Logan’s car, and Patton drove them back to the SBIS office. April left her main bag locked in Logan’s car, but took her smaller bag with her inside, fishing out a lanyard as they entered the building, and looping it over her head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Aunt April, you have an access card?” Patton questioned, sounding just as confused as Virgil felt.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We all have things we keep secret, Kiddo,” April simply replied, ruffling Patton’s curls and making her way towards the elevators, seeming as if she knew exactly where she was going.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Logan had woken up to a medical agent swapping out one of the bags connected to their IV. Their bandages were changed, and Remus helped them sit up a bit, and they’d had something to eat. Roman had even stopped by and given Logan their spare glasses from their office, which allowed them to do a bit of reading while Remus scrolled aimlessly on his phone beside them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A quiet knock at the door caught their attention, and they looked up just in time to see their older sister enter the room with Patton and Virgil following close behind her. They couldn’t help but smile, marking their page and shutting the book in their lap.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s wonderful to see you, April,” they greeted.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You really got yourself in deep this time, didn’t you, Sib?” April returned with a slight chuckle, approaching the bedside and carefully hugging Logan, who did their best to return the gesture.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I will admit, this assignment went far from smoothly,” Logan sighed. “If not for Patton, Janus, their friends, and the twins, I will admit that I do not think I would be sitting here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s not like I did all that much…” Remus mumbled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You helped disarm the bomb in that box!” Patton exclaimed. “None of us could’ve done that by ourselves!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And you helped me keep track of everybody while they were in the line of fire the other night,” Virgil added. “I couldn’t have done that myself.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And you helped get us ready to even go in there in the first place,” Patton tacked on.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan chuckled, pulling the mustached agent closer and giving him a peck on the lips, “You did quite a bit, Remus. Do not undermine your own contributions.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, now that’s just cute,” April mused, smiling as she watched Logan and Remus.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“April…” Logan half-heartedly whined.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Did the two of them </span>
  <em>
    <span>finally</span>
  </em>
  <span> swap spit?!” Remy’s voice came from the doorway, causing Virgil to jump, and Logan to groan, hiding their blush by tucking their face into the crook of Remus’ neck.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m gonna say yes, considering Lo-lo’s reaction,” April giggled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“O. M. G! April Holmes, babe, it has been </span>
  <em>
    <span>too damn long</span>
  </em>
  <span>!” Remy exclaimed, hugging April, though he hissed a bit in pain when she returned the gesture. “Ow, ow, ribs. Anyone want a couple spare ribs? Mine are fucked.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sit down, Shades,” April urged, having Remy sit in one of the spare chairs in the room.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I suppose Patton has informed you of the situation?” Logan questioned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Everything he could, at least,” April confirmed. “Do you think they’d let me see him?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There’s a possibility, seeing as you are his mother.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m going to guess you’re Janus’ Mom?” Roman inquired as he came into view in the doorway.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I am,” the blonde woman confirmed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m gonna warn you, before you try to see him, his burns are </span>
  <em>
    <span>bad</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” he told her. “Other than the medical agents, I’m the only one who saw him. He’s still out, most of his burns are wrapped up, but it’s, well it’s a lot.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>April nodded a bit, “I understand. I need to be there for my Little Snake, though, no matter what.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman nodded, “I get that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan watched from the bed as the pair left the room, shutting the door behind them. The room was quiet for a few moments, before Patton spoke up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why does Aunt April already have an access card?” he inquired.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Your Aunt is an informant for SBIS,” Logan answered. “How else do you think we’ve kept an eye on Venom Order happenings?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That would explain some things,” Virgil chuckled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How are you feeling?” Patton asked, approaching the bed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Still drained, sore, and the like,” Logan replied. “You will likely have to help me for some time once they let me out of here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t doubt that, Cenn,” Patton confirmed. “There’s gonna be a lot of cleanup to do… The house was a disaster.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I expected that,” they sighed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sure there’ll be plenty of agents willing to lend a hand,” Remus chimed in. “I’ll be there, too.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan smiled a bit, holding Remus’ hand as they spoke with the others in the room for a time. After a while, they once again became tired, and the others left them to rest. It was going to be quite the road to recovery.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0021"><h2>21. The Aftermath (pt. 2)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Heads up for this chapter! This chapter contains descriptions of injuries, and descriptions of burns which fall on the more graphic side of things. I don't think there's much to warn about, and it doesn't go on for an extremely long time. It'll still be marked with the usual asterisk bookends, so keep an eye out. Since it's not like, the majority of the chapter, there won't be an overview at the end. If anyone thinks there should be an overview, just let me know!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The first thing Janus noticed when he woke up was how sore he felt. He groaned as he tried to sit up, only to feel a gentle hand on his right shoulder. When he looked over, squinting a bit against the lights, he could make out the form of his Mom beside him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Little Snake,” she softly greeted, giving him a gentle smile. “You gotta stay lying down, right now, okay? You’re in rough shape…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus tried to speak, but found that he couldn’t. His mother quickly spoke up again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No no, don’t try to talk yet, Bud. I’m gonna get someone to help, get you some water, and I’ll be right back, okay?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus nodded, and watched as his Mom left the room. She returned after a bit with Roman, someone he didn’t know who wore a set of scrubs and carried a tablet, and a glass of water with a straw. He lifted his head a bit when the stranger he assumed was a doctor or nurse urged him to, and they removed the oxygen mask that had been over his mouth and nose. His Mom let him take a few sips of water from the glass in her hand, and after coughing and clearing his throat a bit, he finally attempted to speak again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What happened…?” he questioned. It felt difficult to speak, as if the left half of his face wasn’t cooperating with him, resulting in his words being a bit muffled and awkward. Still, he was able to speak, and he was determined to do so.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A lot,” Roman answered. “You got burned pretty bad, Janus.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are the others…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Remy’s got a cast and a couple broken ribs, Logan’s got a busted shoulder, but they’re up and about again. Everyone else is fine.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus smiled a tiny bit at that, “That’s good. And, Viper…?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Joseph is in custody,” his Mother told him. “And under medical watch. Apparently </span>
  <em>
    <span>someone</span>
  </em>
  <span> broke his nose, hit him with a fire poker and proceeded to stab him with the same fire poker, and then shot him in the knee and shoulder,” she stated, looking serious for a moment before she smiled at him. “I’m proud of you, JD.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Asshole deserved it,” Janus replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No doubt,” April confirmed, laughing a bit.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You really should be proud of yourself, Kid,” Roman chimed in. “You had a flash drive in your hand when I got to you, had basically everything we’d been looking for on it. Virgil can probably help us get the rest.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Probably,” Janus agreed. “Can I see him…?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’d like to ask you a few questions first, if you don’t mind,” the stranger in the room interjected. “And your bandages need to be changed.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Alright…” Janus reluctantly agreed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The head of Janus’ bed was adjusted so that he was sitting up, and the stranger went on to ask Janus several questions. They asked about his level of pain, if anything aside from his burns and his shin were hurting, they ran a few quick tests on his vision in his right eye, among other things. He gave short answers, finding it easier to answer with just a few words, rather than fighting with the left half of his face. Then came the part Janus had been nervous about; the bandage changes. The removal and cleaning on his arm, shoulder, chest, and neck was worse than he’d expected, and it was explained to him that most of that area was covered in second degree burns, with just a few patches qualifying as third degree. A short break was taken for Janus to breathe, which he was thankful for.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I want you to know,” the medical agent began, “that you have the option of seeing the damage to your face now. You are by no means obligated to do so. The burns on your face range from second to third degree. This also means that there is nerve damage to the left side of your face and head, which is why it’s difficult for you to speak right now,” they told him, pausing for a moment to see if Janus had any questions. When the boy simply nodded, they took it as a signal to continue. “There is some good news, in all of this. The doctor was able to check your left eye for any damage, and did not find anything concerning enough to warrant its removal. It’s possible that your vision could be affected, but we won’t know the extent of that for a while. We were also able to utilize a couple of small skin grafts, up by the temple and along part of your jaw, which should help minimize some of the worst areas of scarring, and they seem to be taking well.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>At the mention of scarring, Janus didn’t know how to respond. He knew as soon as Roman told him he was badly burned that there would be scars, but hearing from the doctor that they were able to </span>
  <em>
    <span>minimize</span>
  </em>
  <span> some of the </span>
  <em>
    <span>worst</span>
  </em>
  <span> areas really brought things to light. The scars on his arm, shoulder, chest, and even his neck could be hidden under clothing or covered fairly easily with makeup. But the severe scarring he was bound to have on his face? There would be no hiding that; not completely, anyways.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The room was silent as the adults waited for Janus’ response. They gave him all the time he needed, and after a few minutes, he finally made his decision. “I have to…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do you </span>
  <em>
    <span>want</span>
  </em>
  <span> to?” his Mother asked, holding his right hand in her own.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus gave a little nod. “There’s no avoiding it, anyways.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He watched as Roman stood and went to get a hand mirror, while the medical agent went about removing the bandages from his face and head. A couple of spots stuck and pulled a bit, but they were gentle, and it didn’t hurt as much as he’d expected. The boy chalked that up to the nerve damage. Once the bandages were off, the agent beside him took great care in cleaning up the wounds. Finally, Roman handed Janus the mirror, face down.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know you might be tempted, but I would advise against attempting to touch any of the damaged skin,” the medical agent told him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus gave a little nod and took a deep breath. He adjusted his grip on the mirror in his left hand, and squeezed his Mother’s hand which still sat in his right. Slowly, he lifted the mirror to allow himself to see the damage Viper had caused.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He felt his breath catch in his throat.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The left half of his face was mainly an angry red, with patches of darker tones where the flames had likely done the most damage. He could see where the grafts had been put on, and to him they didn’t quite look healthy, but he would trust the doctors on that. His left eye looked a bit dull, and over all, he could hardly recognize himself. The hair on the left side of his head had mostly been burned away, and he squeezed his Mother’s hand tightly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>***</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ll be okay, Honey,” he heard her murmur. He set the mirror down, and the medical agent went about replacing his bandages. Once everything was wrapped up again, he couldn’t help but lift the mirror to see what he looked like.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Things didn’t look so bad covered up. The bandages felt bulkier than they looked, and at least he couldn’t see the damage.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Doctors here will do everything they can to prevent any serious disfigurement,” the medical agent told him. “As things heal, you’ll have the option to go through more minor procedures to maintain the shape of the eye, especially. But it’ll all be up to you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay…” Janus mumbled with a slight nod. At this point, he was just tired. It felt as if he’d been awake for ages.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You should get some rest, Jan,” his Mother suggested. “You can see Virgil and the others after you wake back up, okay?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus simply nodded. The position of his bed was adjusted a bit so he was mostly lying down, and he quickly drifted off to sleep once more.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Roman made his way from Janus’ room in the medical wing of headquarters towards Logan’s office. Logan was in the office, sitting at their desk when he entered, while Remus was sitting on one of the armchairs. Patton occupied the other armchair in the room, while Virgil, Emile, and Remy all sat on the sofa, with Emile showing Remy and Virgil a video on his phone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Exciting stuff going on in here, huh?” Roman joked as he approached Logan’s desk and sat down on the surface.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, thrilling stuff,” Remus replied, looking up from the scrambled Rubik's Cube in their hands.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How is Janus doing?” Logan questioned, looking up from the report they were reading.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, he woke up for a while,” Roman told them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“JD’s awake?” Virgil quickly inquired, seeming to perk up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He was,” Roman told him. “Bandages were changed, one of the docs asked him a few things. He wanted to see you, but he was pretty drained after he saw.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He saw the damage?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman nodded. “I think he might be in a bit of shock. Not that it’s surprising, he’s in pretty bad shape. I can’t imagine what’s going through his head right now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Will we be able to see him soon?” Patton asked, sounding cautiously optimistic.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Maybe,” Roman answered. “Depends on if he’s up for it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“April will send a message when Janus decides he wants visitors,” Logan assured the group.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman nodded. “Have you guys been able to go survey the damage to the house? I know some agents went to at least make sure it was secure down there at the start of things, but they probably didn’t do much cleanup.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We went down earlier,” Patton told him. “It’s pretty crazy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There is quite a bit of work ahead of us before the house is in proper order again,” Logan sighed. “Aside from the damage to the front and back doors, the door to my bedroom is also damaged. The computer setup in my office will need to be replaced again, as will at least one chair from the dining set. There are several bullet holes that will need to be patched and painted over, gashes in the hardwood, a handful of picture frames that will need replacement,” they rattled off.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We got the broken glass cleaned up today,” Patton went on to say. “And marked all the spots that need to be patched and painted.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s rough,” Roman sighed. “At least you’ve got Bureau resources to help with this, Lo.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That is a great help when it comes to the computer and getting help to actually fix things,” Logan confirmed. “It does not help with everything, though. In terms of replacing damaged furniture and the like, we are mostly on our own.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s better than nothing, though,” Patton shrugged. “We’ll find a way to manage.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That we will,” Logan agreed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Roman smiled a bit at that. Since the day he’d met Patton, the boy had been infectiously optimistic, and over the years, it had clearly rubbed off on Logan. He’d known the boy’s mother for a time, and it was clear that he was her child.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The group all sat and chatted for a time, talking about whatever came to mind. Eventually, Roman left with Remus, Remy, and Emile, taking the others to their homes, leaving Virgil, Patton, and Logan in the office.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Virgil sat with Patton and April in Janus’ room. The two teens were working on some make-up work to try to catch up with their classmates, seeing as they’d been out of school since the day they’d infiltrated the Prescott house. April was doing her best to help them with the work, while also responding to emails for her current job.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You forgot to reduce your fractions,” Patton observed, looking over Virgil’s Math work.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fuck the fractions,” Virgil groaned, taking his paper back from Patton in order to fix his mistake.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Language, Sunshine,” April chimed in. Patton giggled a bit.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Reduce your fucking fractions, Hot Topic…” Janus muttered, before clearing his throat a bit.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Aw, you think I’m hot,” Virgil quipped. “Also </span>
  <em>
    <span>hey</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” he added, pouting.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Janus!” Patton exclaimed, setting his work aside and hopping to his feet, standing beside the bed. Virgil joined him, taking hold of Janus’ hand.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus turned his head a bit to look up at Virgil, giving the boy a very tired-looking version of his usual smirk, “I lived, bitch…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, you did,” Virgil laughed. “You look like hell, but at least you capped your old man,” he chuckled. “Scared the shit out of me, though.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“When they got you out of there… We thought we lost you…” Patton sighed, looking at his cousin.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’ll take more than that for me to go down,” Janus assured him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m gonna go get something to eat, you want anything, Jan?” April inquired.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can you get me a muffin, if they still have any?” Janus replied, adjusting his position as his Mom adjusted the head of the bed so he could sit up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No problem,” she smiled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think I’ll go, too. You want anything Virge?” Patton chimed in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can you get me a coffee? Large, black, two sugars,” Virgil told him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You got it!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>With that, Patton and April left the room, shutting the door behind them. Virgil came around to the other side of Janus’ bed, while Janus picked up the cup of water from the rolling tray over his lap and took a sip from the straw.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I still don’t know what to think at this point…” Janus sighed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“About?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“All of this… For all I know, they could ask me to take the stand, I look like fucking Two-Face… I hardly recognize myself right now. I mean, not that I really did </span>
  <em>
    <span>before</span>
  </em>
  <span>, but, y’know...”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil held Janus’ hand and leaned forward, giving his boyfriend -apparently that was really just gonna stick in his head- a quick kiss on the cheek. “I know… But you got this. I’ll be right by your side.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We still haven’t talked about us.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know… We were gonna do it after the Formal, but, then everything happened and we just, didn’t have time, huh?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We could do it now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus gave him a nod, and did his best to scoot over and move the rolling tray out of the way, making space for Virgil to hop up and sit on the bed. Virgil smiled, climbing onto the bed and sitting next to Janus, with his right leg bent under him, and his left hanging off the edge of the bed, swinging lazily.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I had the chance to review the footage from your camera with Logan,” Virgil began. “You called me your </span>
  <em>
    <span>boyfriend</span>
  </em>
  <span>.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I did,” Janus nodded. “I didn’t even </span>
  <em>
    <span>intend </span>
  </em>
  <span>to. It just, slipped out, like it was the most natural thing in the world.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I keep thinking of you as my boyfriend,” Virgil admitted, almost tripping over his words with how quickly he spoke.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We could be,” Janus stated. “If you want to.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I want to if </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span> want to.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil’s heart practically melted at the little smile that crossed Janus’ face. The blonde boy didn’t say anything. He simply let go of Virgil’s hand and grabbed his hoodie, pulling him forward and capturing him in a careful kiss. Virgil returned the kiss, being cautious since he didn’t know the true extent of the damage to Janus’ face. He didn’t want to hurt his boyfriend, after all.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, uh… That answers that,” Virgil stammered, once they parted.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You two are adorable,” April’s voice drifted over from the doorway, where she and Patton stood with some food and drinks.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh my god,” Virgil hurriedly uttered, before pulling his hood up over his head in an attempt to hide the blush quickly making itself known on his cheeks.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton simply giggled, approaching with April and handing Virgil his coffee. The teen mumbled his thanks and took a sip of the hot liquid. April handed Janus his muffin, and Janus broke a piece off the top, before tapping Virgil’s shoulder. When Virgil turned towards him to ask what he wanted, Janus quickly popped the piece of muffin into his mouth with a chuckle.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So cute!” Patton exclaimed, as Virgil chewed the piece of muffin in his mouth.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Virge?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, J?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wanna see that footage later.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You got it.”</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0022"><h2>22. Return to Normalcy</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>It took another couple of weeks for Janus to recover enough to even think about going back to school. When he did go back, his burns were kept covered while he was on school grounds, and he wore his baggy T-shirts and hoodies, since the burns on his chest meant he couldn’t really wear his binder.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The next few months felt incredibly slow to everyone. Remy and Logan recovered from their injuries, the damage done to the Holmes’ house was repaired, Janus went through physical and speech therapy as his burns healed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His left eye was still a bit dull, and his vision was a little blurry in that eye. He decided that he would put up with it until the burns were healed, and look at getting contacts or some sort of corrective surgery to resolve the issue once that time came.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Logan and Remus went on their first official date with Logan’s arm still in a sling, having a nice dinner and sharing a kiss under the star dome in the planetarium. Virgil and Janus went on their first real date once Janus was able to bind again, they went to a movie and got some fast food. It might not have been the most romantic thing, but neither one of them minded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil and Emile had their eighteenth birthdays in December, and Patton had his in January. Soon, February rolled around, and it was Janus’ eighteenth birthday.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Janus woke up to his alarm like he usually did, and groaned as he sat up, dismissing the alarm with a swipe on his phone screen. He looked around the room he’d come to really call his own; three of the walls were a pleasant almost golden yellow, and the corner his bed was pushed into had black art-deco designs painted wrapping around the corner. The fourth wall, where Janus had a corner desk set up, was painted with black chalkboard paint, and had doodles of snakes and various notes all over it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He got out of bed and made his way over to his closet. He checked over the burns on his shoulder and chest, which by now were mostly just angry-looking scars, before pulling on his binder and adjusting it. He put on a fresh T patch, and went about getting dressed, deciding to pull on a set of black jeans and a custom T-shirt Patton and Virgil had given him for Christmas. The shirt was a pale yellow, though not quite pastel, and had an image of a snake’s head on the left side of the chest -the body of the snake was printed going over the shoulder and down the back of the shirt- and had the sentence </span>
  <em>
    <span>Do. Not. Boop. Or you will get the Hurt Juice</span>
  </em>
  <span> accompanying it. The shirt had made Janus laugh harder than he had since he’d been burned, and quickly became one of his favorites.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The boy combed his hair out, and looked over the scars on his neck and face. He’d gone back to the doctors at SBIS headquarters a couple of times to have a few adjustments made to keep the shape of his eye from being changed too badly. There was some clear asymmetry, but it wasn’t as bad as it could have been. He had been slowly working himself up to the point where he could go to school without covering the scars with bandages, and as he popped in his contact lens, he decided that today might as well be the day.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus made his way down to the kitchen, and found Patton at the table with a short stack of pancakes in front of him. His cousin still appeared tired, with his curly hair more of a mess than usual and his baby blue polo not seeming as neat as it normally was. Meanwhile, Logan was standing at the kitchen island, with the griddle plugged in, making pancakes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good morning, Janus,” Logan greeted. “Happy birthday.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, Lo,” Janus responded, taking a seat at the table as Logan shut off the griddle and plated the last of the pancakes. Just as they brought the plate over to the table and set it down, there was a knock at the door, which they went to go answer.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>While Logan was answering the door, Janus helped himself to a couple of pancakes, adding some butter and syrup. As he was about to start cutting the sweet breakfast, his eyes were covered by a set of hands, with one being extremely gentle over his left eye.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Guess who~” a very familiar voice said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hmm… Could it be my favorite Creepy Cookie?” Janus mused. He heard a chuckle behind him, and his head was turned with a gentle guiding hand, his lips being captured in a quick kiss.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Happy birthday, Snek Boi,” Virgil told him with a smirk.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, V,” Janus smiled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Help yourself to some pancakes, Virgil,” Logan offered. “We have plenty.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, Logan,” Virgil replied, accepting a plate from the adult and taking a seat beside Janus, helping himself to a couple of pancakes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The four of them enjoyed their breakfast, and Logan offered to drive the three boys to school, an offer which they all appreciated. After Virgil stowed his bike in the Holmes’ garage, Logan drove the group to the school, and dropped them off.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus hesitated outside the school, looping his lanyard over his head. He had on a simple black zipper hoodie Virgil had given him, with the hood pulled up over his head. He hadn’t attended school without the scars on his head and face at least partially covered, and now he was starting to reconsider his decision to do so today.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m right here with you, J,” Virgil assured him, taking Janus’ hand.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Okay…” Janus nodded, taking a deep breath.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The three boys walked towards the school, meeting up with Emile. Their friend was wearing his blue bracelet, a white shirt, a pale blue hoodie, a pleated grey skirt, and knee-high socks the same color as his hoodie, with a set of white and blue sneakers on his feet. Nobody questioned Emile’s clothing choices, the four of them were in agreement that clothing has no gender, and Emile looked good in just about anything he wore.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Janus! Patton told me it’s your birthday, so I picked these up for you!” Emile exclaimed, holding out a small box to Janus.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, Emile,” Janus smiled, taking the box and pulling off the top. Inside, he found a handful of buttons and pins. One button had the rainbow flag on it, another had the Demisexual flag, and one had the Transgender flag. Along with the buttons, there were a couple of enamel pins; one was the words </span>
  <em>
    <span>Give ‘em the old Razzle Dazzle</span>
  </em>
  <span> filled with glittery red and gold, and the other was a snake curled up into the shape of a heart.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The pride buttons all came from the same shop Patton and I got our pride buttons from. The </span>
  <em>
    <span>Razzle Dazzle</span>
  </em>
  <span> one is totally custom, and the snake heart came from a shop run by a group that rescues snakes and educates people on how to handle them,” Emile told him. “All proceeds from that shop go back into their efforts to keep snakes safe.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“These are awesome, Emile,” Janus told him. “I love them.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I thought you’d like something more than just your lonely little pronoun pin to decorate your lanyard,” Emile smiled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The teens made their way into the school, and went about their day. Janus was pleased to find that he actually felt less eyes on him without the bandages covering his scars, and it certainly helped that he physically felt more comfortable without them. Elliot and Valerie surprised him at his locker with a card they’d made, and Janus couldn’t help but laugh a bit at the corny snake pun they’d written inside.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Remy picked the group up from school, now that he was able to drive again. His wrist was out of the cast, though he still wore a brace, and his ribs were healing well. He drove the four teens back to Logan’s house, and parked in the driveway behind Logan’s car.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus got out of the vehicle with Patton, Virgil, Emile, and Remy, and couldn’t help but notice that the four made a point of keeping him behind them as they entered. He found out why once they entered the dining area.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>On the table, there sat a cake, snacks, drinks, and a handful of gifts. Along with all that, Roman, Remus, and Logan stood around the space, and a laptop with a webcam set up displayed his Mother’s face, as she had gone back to California a week or so ago.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Happy birthday, Little Snake!” April exclaimed when she saw him. The others in the room also wished him a happy birthday, and Janus was ushered to the table, where he took a seat at the head of the table, his spot indicated by a handful of black and yellow balloons, as well as one that was shaped like a snake. The entire group sat at the table and island, enjoying cake and telling stories and jokes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, Bananaconda, whenever you’re ready, there’s stuff for you to open up,” Roman piped up.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nickname thief,” Virgil accused.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Too late, can’t take it back,” Roman replied.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus rolled his eyes, shaking his head a bit, before helping to clear away some of the plates on the table before Logan and Roman shifted most of the gifts up towards him so he could open them. Roman had given him a new set of makeup brushes with handles styled to look like snakes, Remus’ gift had been a custom makeup palette, with the colors he seemingly used for his snake makeup. Remy had given him a pair of insulated travel mugs and a set of reusable straws. Logan’s gift was a new poster for his room, which depicted different types of Ball Pythons. Virgil had given him a couple of new things for his room, as well; one was a collage of poster art from different musicals Janus was a fan of, and the other was a piece of artwork depicting Janus and Virgil dressed as JD and Veronica from </span>
  <em>
    <span>Heathers</span>
  </em>
  <span> -with Janus dressed as JD and Virgil as Veronica- with a purple-tinted spotlight shining on them, and the words </span>
  <em>
    <span>Our Love is God</span>
  </em>
  <span> written in black, with a white drop shadow.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Virge, did you make this?” Janus breathed after opening the artwork Virgil had given him, carefully running his fingers over the frame the artwork was in.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Virgil admitted. “I figured since we couldn’t be in the play like we wanted to, and ended up on the stage crew, that I’d paint what could’ve been,” he shrugged, rubbing the back of his neck. “I’m pretty sure that if things hadn’t happened, you would’ve gotten JD’s part, and uh… Yeah… You like it…?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I </span>
  <em>
    <span>love</span>
  </em>
  <span> it,” Janus corrected, pulling Virgil down by his hoodie and giving him a quick kiss.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus went on to open Patton’s gift to him, and found he had to stand up to do so. His cousin had given him a set of pride flags, one being the Demisexual flag, and one being the Transgender flag.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There’s one more thing for you, Jan,” his Mom chimed in once the excitement died down a bit. “Well, it’s kind of two, but they’re together. You’ll find your last surprise in your room.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus was confused as to just what could be up in his room, though he waited until Roman had picked up the laptop his Mom was calling through before heading upstairs. The others followed him, and he hesitated at the door. After looking towards his Mom, who gave an encouraging nod, he opened the door and stepped inside.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>In the corner of his room, opposite from his desk, there was a good sized terrarium on a sturdy-looking stand. He approached the tank, and gasped quietly when he saw a bit of movement. The boy stepped closer, observing the inside of the tank, and after a few minutes, the creature inside made itself seen.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is that… Is this a snake?” his voice was quiet, filled with awe as he watched the snake through the glass.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A Butter Ball Python,” his Mom told him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I recall several times where you mentioned wanting to have a pet snake,” Logan told him. “With how knowledgeable you are on the subject matter, I brought the idea up with your Mother. She confirmed that it would be an acceptable choice.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ve loved Ball Pythons since I was a kid,” Janus stated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And now you have one of your own,” his Mom smiled. “He’s about two years old, from a trusted breeder. But, he doesn’t have a name yet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think I’ll call him Monty,” Janus mused, turning back to the snake in the tank.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Monty Python,” Virgil chuckled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s cute!” Patton complimented, bouncing a little on the balls of his feet.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus laughed a bit, smiling as he watched the snake slither into his hiding spot. He turned to the others, smiling brighter than he had since he was burned, and hugged Logan tight. Logan returned the gesture, a subtle smile crossing their features.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you so much. I love him,” Janus thanked them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re welcome, Little Snake,” his Mother beamed. “Happy birthday, buddy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, Mom,” Janus smiled.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Virgil asked Janus to go to Prom with him in the simplest way he could think of. They were sitting at their usual table at lunch, and he just asked him, as casually as he’d ask about a homework assignment. He wasn’t surprised when he got a resounding </span>
  <em>
    <span>yes</span>
  </em>
  <span> and Janus pulled him across the table to kiss him when the lunch monitor’s back was turned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>After they bought their tickets, time seemed to move quickly. Soon, Virgil was standing in the bathroom in the Holmes’ house, just as he’d done for the Fall Formal, pulling on his black and purple suit. This time, though, he was also poking a snake-shaped pin through his lapel, making sure it was straight. He combed and sprayed his hair, touched up his makeup, and took a deep breath, looking himself over in the mirror as he buttoned the top button of his jacket.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He walked out into the living room, adjusting his sleeves a bit. Logan was standing with Patton and Emile, adjusting Patton’s tie. Emile was wearing a pale pink dress shirt and well-tailored dark grey slacks. His shirt and slacks were store-bought, though Dot had tailored the slacks to fit the way Emile wanted, and she had made him the suit jacket he was currently lint-rolling.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You boys all look wonderful,” Logan told them, as they turned to help Emile with his tie as the teen pulled on his jacket.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, Logan,” Virgil smiled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>After a little while longer, in which time Virgil applied some simple makeup to Patton -some pale blue eyeshadow, white eyeliner, and a bit of makeup to bring out the boy’s freckles-, they heard Janus coming down the steps. Virgil looked up, quickly grabbing the purple boutonniere he’d picked up for Janus as his boyfriend came into the living room.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Dot had remade Janus’ shirt, jacket, capelet, and gloves after finding out what had happened. The new shirt, gloves, and capelet were the same as the old ones, though the jacket had a more intricate snake design stitched into it. Janus wore the suit with a black bowtie, shiny black dress shoes that had a bit of a heel on them -roughly an inch and a half, just enough to bring him a bit closer to Virgil’s height-, and his bowler hat. He had done his makeup, as well, using his snake palette on the left half of his face, now that his burns were healed for the most part. He’d included a bit more purple in his scales than he usually used, in order to pair with Virgil’s suit. On the right half of his face, he’d done some of his usual contouring to sharpen his features, and used some purple and gold eyeshadow to tie things together. When he approached, the boy was holding his hands behind his back.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“For a third time, I swear to god, I might </span>
  <em>
    <span>actually</span>
  </em>
  <span> be gay,” Virgil stated. “I uh… I picked this up for you,” he stammered a bit, holding out the small plastic box that held the boutonniere.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Janus gave a quiet chuckle. “It would seem we thought alike,” Janus mused, bringing his hands out from behind his back. He held a similar box, though the boutonniere it contained was a yellow rose, rather than a purple one.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Virgil hardly noticed Logan taking photos of him and Janus pinning the flowers onto one another’s jackets. After a number of photos of the four boys were taken, Patton grabbed his key to Logan’s car, and they made their way out of the house, heading to the dance.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>There was a flurry of caps being thrown into the air, as Patton stood on the football field with Emile, Janus, and Virgil. Their class had finally graduated, and now they were heading on to the next phase of their lives. The group went to a local restaurant, and talked over a celebratory meal.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Where do you guys wanna go for college?” Roman asked, while attempting to stab Remus’ hand with his fork to keep them from stealing some of his food.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I got accepted to SBA a while ago,” Emile answered, before taking a bite of her sandwich.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Same, SBA,” Virgil responded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Both of you?” Remy sounded amazed, his fork frozen halfway between his plate and his mouth.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton and Janus exchanged a glance, and Patton was trying to keep from squealing. As always, Logan noticed. “Is there something you two have neglected to tell me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Patton looked to Janus, and the pair exchanged a nod, before they each produced a letter from the pockets of the vests they wore. They unfolded the letters and set them both on the table for everyone to see.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We both got accepted!” Patton couldn’t help but squeal.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re all looking at a full four-body crew starting at the Sanders Bureau Academy this fall,” Janus smirked. He tried to keep his cool expression when Virgil hugged him, but quickly gave up, beaming as he hugged his boyfriend.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, allow us to be the first to welcome you all aboard,” Logan smiled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This year was pretty crazy,” Patton mused, before taking a bite of his sandwich.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Virgil agreed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It was pretty chaotic,” Emile confirmed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“At this point, I think chaos is normal,” Janus shrugged. “For us, at least.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It certainly will be. Bureau work is far from boring, though, you all already knew that,” Logan chuckled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The group all continued to chat over their meal, talking about things that had happened not just in the past year, but all through the years the teenagers had been in school, as well as things that had happened while Logan, Roman, Remus, and Remy had been at the college the four friends would be attending. Time seemed to move too fast and yet too slowly, though nobody found anything wrong with that. The teens could hardly wait for their new adventure to begin, and the adults could hardly wait to see just what the aspiring agents would bring to the table.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>So, that's it for this one!<br/>I do have more Chaos is Normal content on the way, along with a few other things I've had sitting in my Drive.</p><p>I'm SO glad you've all enjoyed this story, I had an absolute blast writing it, and this universe isn't finished being written. I hope you all stick around for what I've got coming around next.</p><p>That said, thank you all so much for all your comments and kudos. That feedback fuels me.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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